{
  "abstract": "Context:: Malaysia has rapidly expanded Virtual Consultation Services (VCS) in public primary care to improve access and reduce healthcare burden. However, local evidence on patient-incurred cost savings from VCS remains limited.\n\nObjectives:: This study estimated the mean cost saving per patient from virtual consultations compared with physical consultations and examined differences in patient-incurred costs between the two modalities in Malaysian public primary care.\n\nMethods:: A cross-sectional study was conducted from July to October 2025 in 91 government health clinics across East and West Malaysia. Malaysian adults aged ≥18 years who had attended at least one physical and one virtual outpatient follow-up consultation were included. Cost data were collected from the patient’s perspective using a structured online proforma. Direct and indirect costs were identified, measured, and valued. Paired t-tests were used to compare mean costs, with Wilcoxon signed-rank tests performed as sensitivity analyses.\n\nResults:: A total of 420 participants were included (mean age 37.23 years [SD = 11.04]; 78.3% female). The mean total cost of a physical consultation was RM47.97 (SD = RM60.69), compared with RM0.04 (SD = RM0.69) for a virtual consultation. The mean cost saving per patient was RM47.93 (SD = RM60.64), with a significant mean difference (95% CI: RM42.12–RM53.75; P < 0.001). Travel costs and productivity loss were the main contributors to cost savings.\n\nConclusion:: Virtual consultations resulted in substantial patient-level cost savings compared with physical consultations, supporting continued scale-up of VCS in Malaysian public primary care.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Community Medicine, Universiti Sains Malaysia School of Medical Sciences, Kubang Kerian, Malaysia"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 3,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Ihsan Abdul Razak"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Surianti Sukeri"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Noor Aman A. Hamid"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/0wxjyh688c26w.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_212_26",
  "fulltext_url": "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13722236/?tool=EBI",
  "id": "0wxjyh688c26w",
  "issns": [
    "2249-4863",
    "2278-7135"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13722236",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Original Article"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2739|Telemedicine and Telehealth Implementation"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7220834730",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13722236/pdf/?tool=EBI",
  "pmcid": "PMC13722236",
  "pmid": "42964866",
  "published": "2026-07-01",
  "publisher": "Wolters Kluwer -- Medknow Publications",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/0wxjyh688c26w.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-31T12:21:45Z",
      "native_id": "PMC:PMC13722236",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13722236"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-03T12:22:47Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13722236",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_212_26"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2739|Telemedicine and Telehealth Implementation",
      "subfield": "epidemiology-public-health"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Comparative cost analysis of virtual consultation for outpatient service in Malaysian public health clinics",
  "title_text": "Comparative cost analysis of virtual consultation for outpatient service in Malaysian public health clinics",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-03T12:22:47Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/0wxjyh688c26w",
  "venue": "Journal of family medicine and primary care",
  "versions": []
}