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In a recent survey, of over 1300 physicians, more than 90% of them reported treating some or all of their patients via telehealth. Additionally, after the pandemic ends the majority of them plan to keep using telehealth to some extent . (conducted by Sermo, a physician polling website) Moving to virtual appointments, "allows long-distance patient and clinician contact, care, advice, reminders, education, intervention, monitoring, and remote admissions" [1] [2].
"Though practices in some US states are starting to reopen for elective procedures, all of them have seen a sharp decline in patient volumes as a result of the pandemic. Physicians in the U.S. reported a much sharper decline than their peers in other countries. According to the survey, U.S. physicians reported a net decrease in volumes of 67%, compared to a 15% decrease on average across all countries.
To offset this, many doctors are turning to telehealth for the first time to keep some of their patients. Nearly half of physicians said they used telemedicine for the first time for a physical consultation. Another 43% conducted mental health consultations for the first time over telehealth.
The types of tools physicians are using also showed some variation between countries. In the U.S., more providers reported using telemedicine for a consultation (63%) than physicians in other countries. Video conferencing was popular across all countries, with 47% of U.S. physicians using it. Meanwhile, remote monitoring tools such as wearables or sensors were more widely used in Asia and Europe than in the U.S., where just 8% of physicians reported using them." [3]
The question now, is will this be the "new normal" or will physicians and patients go back to in-person visits. Some professions like surgeons and ophthalmologist will of course, but how about Family Doctors and clinical specialists like Endocrinologists. Do virtual visits help or hinder the patient experience? Should virtual visits become the norm with in person appointments only happening when needed?
It is too early to say what the change will be, but Virtual medicine (telehealth) has seen a significant spike during the COVID-19 pandemic and will likely change the standard for how patient visits occur. It will be interesting to hear what both physicians and patients have to say when the option is given to them.
If you are looking for a Telehealth solution for your clinic, check out our Virtual Clinic solution or contact us at info@aryaehr.com or www.aryaehr.com/contact
[1] Shaw DK (June 2009). "Overview of telehealth and its application to cardiopulmonary physical therapy" https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2845264/
[3] By ELISE REUTER, Medcity News: https://medcitynews.com/2020/05/survey-more-than-90-of-physicians-are-treating-patients-remotely/?rf=1
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