I found this very interesting.
I had read about telehealth services but I really didn't understand the concept. A poll by a telehealth company brought the idea to life for me. American Well is a developer of the video chat doctor visit. It is promoted as a way to make doctor visits less expensive and more accessible. Harris Poll interviewed over 2000 people who generally found the idea acceptable. Many found the idea of lower cost combined with no waiting for an appointment very desirable. With the growing use of personal health monitors that measure blood pressure, temperature, heart rate, etc, the doctor has the basic data available. It is projected that an evisit would save over $100. for an appointment.
The concept is attractive to parents who find it hard to bring an ill child in to the office. Or if you were sick in the night it would be so much easier to "see" the doctor. While you might expect the idea to appeal more to young tech savvy people, it is actually more attractive to the senior set who may find it more difficult to get to the office in person. A quick visit required to refill a prescription is a pain unless you could do it via Skype.
The idea has been around for a while but there are several reasons it is getting serious consideration now.
Better and faster internet connections make video conferencing more feasible.
Using a mobile device, people would be able to connect with the doctor from anywhere.
Electronic Health Records provide the doctor online history on the patient.
Patients are getting comfortable with forms of instant messaging.
Finally, states like New York, are recognizing video doctoring as a legitimate form of medical care.
Since it is my current opinion and experience that modern doctors never touch you anymore, I can't see any reason a video visit would not be just as good as an in person visit. I'm for it!
I had read about telehealth services but I really didn't understand the concept. A poll by a telehealth company brought the idea to life for me. American Well is a developer of the video chat doctor visit. It is promoted as a way to make doctor visits less expensive and more accessible. Harris Poll interviewed over 2000 people who generally found the idea acceptable. Many found the idea of lower cost combined with no waiting for an appointment very desirable. With the growing use of personal health monitors that measure blood pressure, temperature, heart rate, etc, the doctor has the basic data available. It is projected that an evisit would save over $100. for an appointment.
The concept is attractive to parents who find it hard to bring an ill child in to the office. Or if you were sick in the night it would be so much easier to "see" the doctor. While you might expect the idea to appeal more to young tech savvy people, it is actually more attractive to the senior set who may find it more difficult to get to the office in person. A quick visit required to refill a prescription is a pain unless you could do it via Skype.
The idea has been around for a while but there are several reasons it is getting serious consideration now.
Better and faster internet connections make video conferencing more feasible.
Using a mobile device, people would be able to connect with the doctor from anywhere.
Electronic Health Records provide the doctor online history on the patient.
Patients are getting comfortable with forms of instant messaging.
Finally, states like New York, are recognizing video doctoring as a legitimate form of medical care.
Since it is my current opinion and experience that modern doctors never touch you anymore, I can't see any reason a video visit would not be just as good as an in person visit. I'm for it!
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