Postoperative remote first care for financially and environmentally sustainable healthcare

This study aims to quantify the financial and environmental savings associated with remote follow up in patients undergoing lower limb arterial surgery. A prospective observational study evaluating financial cost(fC) and environmental cost(eC) of postoperative follow-up models. Remote-first screening(RFS), where all patients were reviewed remotely, and complications triaged for face-to-face assessment and treatment. The second model was remote-first treatment(RFT): all patients were reviewed remotely, but only high-risk complications trigger face-to-face review. Both were compared with conventional face-to-face review. All participants received both face-to-face and remote review. 105 patients were included. RFS has a per patient mean reduction of 30.8.0±26.2 kgCO2e(RR 71.0%, p < 0.001) and fC reduction of £60.17±42.98(RR 87.0%, p < 0.001). RFT has a mean reduction of 38.5±17.4 kgCO2e(RR 88.8%, p < 0.001) and fC reduction of £83.29±45.51(RR 87.0%, p < 0.001). Remote models demonstrated economic and environmental gains over routine face-to-face assessments. Integration of these analyses into health intervention assessment is important to reducing climate change.