Table 1
Caller characteristics, clinical presentation, and disposition outcomes of 2953 phone‑based telemedicine consultations, Beirut Arab University Healthcare Center/IRADA COVID‑19 Clinic, Lebanon, February 2–May 11, 2021.
| DOMAIN | VARIABLE | NO. (%) OR MEDIAN (IQR) |
|---|---|---|
| Who placed the call | Patient self | 1753 (59.4) |
| Family member | 1186 (40.2) | |
| Call sequence | First‑time call | 1991 (67.4) |
| Sex | Female | 1564 (53.0) |
| Male | 1389 (47.0) | |
| Age, years | Median (IQR) | 41 (30–55) |
| Aged 60 years or older | 584 (19.8) | |
| Governorate | Beirut and Mount Lebanon | 2249 (76.2) |
| Other governorates | 678 (23.0) | |
| Comorbidity | Any chronic comorbidity | 1469 (49.7) |
| Hypertension | 600 (20.3) | |
| Diabetes mellitus | 344 (11.6) | |
| Reason for call | Confirmed COVID‑19 | 2046 (69.3) |
| Suspected COVID‑19 | 383 (13.0) | |
| Recovered from COVID‑19 | 267 (9.0) | |
| Questions or concerns without infection or exposure | 157 (5.3) | |
| Known exposure to a confirmed case | 100 (3.4) | |
| Symptoms at time of call | Any symptoms | 2507 (84.9) |
| Mixed respiratory and nonrespiratory (of symptomatic) | 1391 (55.5) | |
| Nonrespiratory only (of symptomatic) | 791 (31.6) | |
| Respiratory only (of symptomatic) | 298 (11.9) | |
| COVID‑19 testing | Tested at time of call | 2396 (81.1) |
| Positive among tested | 2204 (92.0) | |
| Disposition | Home management with safety‑netting | 1736 (58.8) |
| General medical advice | 924 (31.3) | |
| Primary‑care or specialty referral | 60 (2.0) | |
| Emergency‑department referral | 230 (7.8) | |
| Supervision | Escalated to on‑call family physician | 195 (6.6) |
[i] Abbreviation: IQR, interquartile range. Percentages are of the total cohort (N = 2953) unless otherwise stated; symptom‑pattern rows use symptomatic callers (n = 2507) as denominator. Source: BAUHC/IRADA call center database.
Figure 1
Daily Call Volume to the BAUHC/IRADA COVID‑19 Phone Clinic, Lebanon, February 2–May 11, 2021. Daily counts of consultations across the 99‑day operational window. Call volume rose sharply in the first days after launch, plateaued at approximately 30–45 consultations per day from mid‑February through early April, and then declined steadily through April and into early May 2021 as the Alpha‑variant wave receded and national case numbers fell.
Figure 2
Disposition Outcomes by Time‑of‑Day Period, BAUHC/IRADA COVID‑19 Phone Clinic, Lebanon, February 2–May 11, 2021. Distribution of the four disposition pathways across daytime (08:00–18:00), evening (18:00–24:00), and overnight (00:00–08:00) blocks. The overnight block had the highest emergency‑department referral proportion (12.8%) despite the lowest absolute volume (109/2953 consultations, 3.7%).
Table 2
Direct operational cost (USD) of the BAUHC/IRADA COVID‑19 phone clinic over the 14‑week window.
| COST CATEGORY | TOTAL COST (USD) | SHARE OF DIRECT COST (%) | COST PER CONSULTATION (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Workforce reimbursement (residents and interns) | 8356 | 75.7 | 2.83 |
| Equipment and materials | 2676 | 24.3 | 0.91 |
| Total direct cost | 11,032 | 100.0 | 3.74 |
| Cost per unique caller (n = 1991) | 5.54 |
[i] Raw expenditure: workforce USD8355.83, equipment USD2675.76 (total USD11,031.59); values rounded to the nearest USD1, with per‑consultation costs to two decimals. Denominator is the 2953 consultations managed during the period; cost per unique caller uses the 1991 unique callers. Non‑monetary contributions from Beirut Arab University (facility use, electricity, landline telephony, information‑technology support, and director time) are not included.