Telemedicine: how do we contribute to more people being able to access a clinical appointment no matter where they are?

Easier access to healthcare with telemedicine

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Photo: Brooke Cagle

Telemedicine has been on the rise for a while but since the global pandemic of 2020, we have seen an increase in the development and implementation of telemedicine around the world. Telemedicine has the ability to contribute to more people being able to access their clinical appointments, no matter where they are. In this article, we will take a look at how telemedicine helps clinics expand their outreach and how telemedicine can be implemented properly.

Telemedicine provides a more convenient and a more accessible patient care

According to recent research and a Cisco global survey, 74% of patients prefer easy and instant access to healthcare services. Convenience is key in today's healthcare, and telemedicine can offer it. With the addition of virtual care in the form of telemedicine, your patients can experience simple, on-demand care. Virtual care comes without the usual wasted time and costs of in-person visits.

Patients who are home-bound, cannot come for an in-person visit, live in remote areas, or simply cannot take time off their work can access care virtually. To utilize and deliver virtual care efficiently, a health clinic can deploy a number of different means for communication with patients such as video conferencing, smartphone apps, and online management systems. These kinds of digital tools can connect more patients than ever to health clinics and those living in remote areas do not have to worry about travel costs etc. They can connect with their healthcare service providers easily and from the comfort of their homes.

Due to travel costs, regular hospital visits can be expensive, particularly in rural areas. When you add the global pandemic on top of that, in-person visits present quite a risk for a great number of patients. That's where telemedicine comes into play. Using the different digital tools and services, a patient can conveniently and safely get the needed medical information, services, and so on. Telemedicine saves both the patient's and the health care provider's time and in addition to this also reduces the treatment's costs by completely removing any kind of transport costs.

Clinics can achieve higher efficiency in remote areas with virtual appointments

Telemedicine today presents a great opportunity for patients living in remote areas to connect with their doctors, get additional information about their healthcare journey, and overall access to their healthcare providers. Aside from those living in remote areas, patients who are also at high risk when it comes to the global pandemic can also choose to access their appointments virtually, using video conference calls.

If an in-person appointment is not absolutely necessary or needed, telemedicine and the use of digital tools and services enable patients to continue to receive their care, from their own doctors only virtually. Furthermore, telemedicine allows clinics to increase their capacities by enabling them to receive more patients.

Improved telemedicine through the implementation of breakthrough AI technologies

Thanks to video conferencing, many providers were both to telehealth which can offer a ton of different things. Through the new wave of AI technologies, health clinics can deploy new telemedicine techniques. For example, when talking to a patient, clinicians can use natural language processing to take notes automatically. The most recent advancements in telemedicine technologies include Artificial Intelligence or AI for short.

AI systems that are powered by the natural language processing engine can deliver a lot of new digital tools and services to health clinics around the world. These digital tools can assist patients to make easier and faster appointment changes, scheduling, obtaining the needed information for their healthcare journey, and so on.

With AI and telemedicine, patients no longer have to go through notorious call centers, switch from one agent to another, no more queues and long waiting times, etc. In addition to this, physicians will be able to access patient information more conveniently and efficiently. Electronic files and digital doctor's agendas will eliminate waiting times as well. With virtual appointments, doctors can also treat more patients.

The need for telemedicine in modern health clinics

The raising costs of healthcare as well as the need for better treatments are constantly pushing health clinics to develop new ways of communicating and engaging with patients. Telemedicine and the overall usage of AI in healthcare present a new way of treating patients that is more efficient and effective than ever before. The global pandemic has proved that health clinics need updates in the form of their overall communication with patients. Furthermore, it is obvious that call centers are no longer efficient and patients and clinics can benefit greatly from new, more innovative ways of scheduling and rescheduling appointments. This is all possible with telemedicine and digital tools and services in healthcare.

Telemedicine promotes better connectivity and also presents a convenient way to attend appointments virtually regardless of the location of a patient. This is extremely helpful for all those living in remote areas. Patients will be able to address their healthcare issues quickly and instantly, from their own homes. Therefore, improved timeliness of care is one of the key advantages of telemedicine. Better patient quality can be achieved using this new way of treating patients. Virtual visits and appointments that are constantly available reassure patients that their providers are available and involved in their care process. Answering questions quickly, reporting early warning signs related to chronic diseases, and making a follow-up appointment faster are all some of the major benefits of using telemedicine.

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