A novel innovative practice that has recently emerged is the use of telecommunications technology to deliver medical services at a distance also known as telemedicine. Telemedicine holds the potential to change the primary care sector with the help of patients’ outcomes, affordable cost and easy access from home. This will help telemedicine be a game changer. In this blog post, we will briefly discuss how telemedicine is changing the way that primary care is provided to the patients living near as well as overseas and also many benefits that it brings to patients and doctors.
Many studies have shown that patients show their satisfaction with telemedicine because it allows them to take consultation as per their flexible schedules. During the pandemic period telemedicine got widely accepted by people throughout the world. This helps make healthcare more efficient and accessible to all.
The Rise of Telemedicine in Primary Care
The implementation of telemedicine in Primary Care gained importance at the time of covid-19 pandemic, as healthcare suppliers look to ensure patient safety when maintaining access to care. Through studies, primary care physicians announced that telemedicine has increased patient access, decreased travel time, and is useful for both patients and providers. Telemedicine is becoming a vital tool which allows people to receive primary care remotely, hence it also helps in reducing the risk of transmission, if a person is infected with any kind of virus or any communicable disease.
Benefits of Telemedicine
Telemedicine provides various advantages and benefits to the patient as well as doctors. Below there are several benefits which telemedicine provides to patients.
- Increased access to care: Telemedicine breaks down the topography barriers and allows patients in distant areas to connect with the healthcare suppliers more easily. This is especially favorable for those who are physically challenged and have strength issues or suffering from any kind of chronic conditions and need regular check ups.
- Convenience: Patients can take appointments online and get connected to the doctors easily. This practice helps in reducing traveling time and helps them to utilize their time more wisely. This convenience makes people more satisfied and adhere to such advanced treatment ideas.
- Efficiency: Telemedicine consultation usually needs less time than personal visits. Doctors can control a larger number of patients without compromising the care.
- Continuity of care: Telemedicine makes ongoing communication between patients and suppliers, allowing for timely adjustment to plan the treatment according to patients feedback and health data observers. This will help health professionals to know their patients personally, so that they can provide them with treatment options that suit them.
- Cost effectiveness: By reducing high costs related with physical office space and decreasing the patient travel cost, telemedicine can lower the overall healthcare costs for both providers and patients.
Challenges of Telemedicine:
- Technical barriers: Not all patients have reliable internet or the required devices for the telehealth consultation from the experts. This can disproportionately affect the older adults or those who have low-income societies. Uneducated people who are not so familiar with this technology will face this barrier and are not able to get treatment properly.
- Loss of personal interaction: the absence of face to face interaction can be a barrier in the development of doctor and patient relationship. Some doctors express concern that, they will not be able to tell the accurate diagnosis and treatment because of missing non-verbal cues which are important for that.
- Regulatory issues: variability in state law according to telemedicine practices can make complicated service deliveries. Reimbursement policies may not favour telehealth services compared to traditional physical visits.
- Limited physical examination: some specific medical conditions need physical examination to detect the diagnosis treatment. Telemedicine is not favorable for all the cases, hence there is a need for a hybrid system.
Future of telemedicine in Primary care
- Nowadays we see Many people with health bands on their hands, it now becomes a trend. People used to monitor their heart rate, step count etc on that device.
- Artificial intelligence helps in providing virtual prescriptions to patients. People can use them to understand some medical terms. Based on the symptoms and data provided, it generates personalized health suggestions.
- Education is the most important thing which people should know, creating awareness about telemedicine services is necessary. So that people can use it efficiently.
- Self checkup kits like glucose monitoring kits for the people who are suffering from diabetes. This kit help them to actively Monitor themselves.
Conclusion
Telemedicine shows the transformation of primary care delivery, which helps people to book appointments and get consultations from experienced doctors overseas also. It’s not possible every time to reach doctors for minor problems, so telemedicine opens a new way to Innovations. Before pandemic telemedicine was not in so much demand but after pandemic they came in demand and also used by people worldwide.
