A lot of people do not like to go and see their doctors. Whether that is because they have a legitimate fear of it or they are being extra cautious during a global pandemic, it is still something that is true. This is not a good thing because this stops people from seeing their doctors and getting the medical attention that they need. Thankfully there is a thing called telemedicine that makes it easier for people to see their doctors from the comfort of their homes. It is a funny thing how being in one’s house can relax a person that much more.
Telehealth has been shown to overcome barriers to health services caused by distance between patient and provider, access to reliable transportation, fragmentation of care due to gaps in time between appointments, and lack of available providers.
The Benefits of Telemedicine
There are a lot of great benefits when you develop a telemedicine app and bring it to the people. The biggest thing that telemedicine does is drive down the rate of no show for their doctor appointments. When the patient does not show up for an appointment, the doctor’s office does not get paid for that secession so they want everyone to show up when they say they will. Some of the biggest reasons people do not show up for their appointments are just forgetting about it, they got stuck in traffic, an appointment prior to the doctors took longer than expected, they could not find the doctor’s office, or they just could not find any parking.
Those are all valid reasons for people not showing up to their appointments. Telemedicine is a way that these issues can be solved. The patient does not need to leave their house. Getting to see their doctor is as easy as clicking a button. Another advantage of telemedicine is that it lowers the risks of a sick patient bringing sickness or virus into the doctor’s building. This is a pretty big advantage now that there is a global pandemic overtaking this earth. A lot of medical practices struggled to stay open during corona, and having access to telemedicine helps lessen the burden of trying to stay open during a pandemic. The biggest reason these days people do not want to go see their doctors is the fear of contracting the coronavirus while they are there. It is a legitimate fear as either people could be there when they are sick or they could be there being asymptomatic and not know they are spreading it. Telemedicine makes people feel a lot safer and less likely to skip their appointments knowing that they do not have to travel to them.
In the end, it is very important that people go and see their doctors. While a lot of them just have a fear of going, there are a lot of good other reasons not to show up. Telemedicine helps calm those fears and allows people to get the medical attention they need. The last thing any person wants is to lose their life or the life of a loved one because they did not go see the doctor, especially when there are many ways to see one.
1. Telemedicine increases access to care
Distance and travel time between patients and care providers can limit access to care. Fortunately, telemedicine can overcome geographic barriers to healthcare, especially for specialized providers. Telemedicine can be particularly beneficial for patients in medically underserved communities and those in rural geographical locations where clinician shortages exist.
2. Telemedicine reduces healthcare costs
Telemedicine can increase efficiency of care delivery, reduce expenses of caring for patients or transporting to another location, and can even keep patients out of the hospital. In fact, one study showed that telemedicine care had 19 percent savings over inpatient care cost.
3. Telemedicine enhances traditional face-to-face medicine
A strong doctor-patient relationship is the foundation for high-quality patient care and reducing health care costs. Telemedicine should support, not replace, traditional care delivery. With telemedicine care providers can continue to care for patients in-person care while still providing the flexibility and convenience of seeing patients remotely for follow up visits, check-ups, and education when appropriate or necessary.
4. Telemedicine improves patient engagement and satisfaction
Telemedicine makes it easier and more convenient for patients to stay healthy and engaged in their health care. Patients love the convenience, flexibility and real-time care with their providers.
5. Telemedicine improves provider satisfaction
Being a healthcare provider today can be challenging and stressful at times. Telemedicine can improve job satisfaction by making it easier to meet with patients. Providers can use telemedicine to make it easier to balance their work and family life.