Telemedicine services have increased in popularity over the past few years, especially among specialty practices, as a response to the social distancing required during COVID-19 pandemic. Doctors and patients can keep in touch and manage consultations anywhere. Telehealth continues to transform businesses by making an alternative mode of communication available, reducing barriers such as distance, particularly in rural areas. With a rising shortage of healthcare providers, hospitals and other facilities are transitioning to telemedicine to reduce costs while keeping patients healthy. The question now is: Is it a viable option for your business? Keep on reading to find out.
From Improving Access to Physicians to Raising the Quality of Care, Telemedicine Has Transformative Power
Try to imagine the following situation. You run a post-acute care facility helping people regain their strength so they can return home. Generally speaking, patients receive these services following hospitalisation for surgery, injury, or illness. Telemedicine can completely change how you handle healthcare, ensuring patients receive the best possible care. A telemedicine service can be provided synchronously (in real-time) or asynchronously (with a time delay between service provision and receipt). You can leverage telemedicine to ensure patients are monitored around the clock, meaning you can deliver care equal to five-star industry standards.
The quality care component has distinct elements, such as AI, machine learning, vital signs management, chronic care medicine, and 24/7 care – this list isn’t exhaustive. The complexity of an emergency, special need, or at-night issue is reduced by relying on a solid partner; the solution is flawless, and nurses see a visible change in the residents’ condition. Those who care for the sick can pick up their phones, hit the button, and a doctor’s there to take care of the patient. Overcoming challenges depends on effective management, yet this effort pays off, as facilities can use devices beyond the likes of videoconferencing, such as virtual stethoscopes, visual aids, wearable EKG/ECG, etc.
Keep In Mind, It Comes with Some Hurdles, But It’s Nothing That Can’t Be Overcome
The implementation of telemedicine implies making some adjustments to the existing workflows. Some important qualities to look for when undertaking an assessment of telemedicine solution providers are expert care, transparency, and technology savviness, to name a few.
Look for a company that isn’t money-focused because organisations of this kind tend to take shortcuts. What you need is a telemedicine solution provider with years of experience and a “we’re in this together” mindset across the care continuum. Telemedicine service capabilities such as remote patient monitoring and mobile health make it possible for clinical teams to oversee patient health beyond vitals. Therefore, telemedicine can benefit post-acute care settings like long-term care hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, inpatient rehabilitation facilities, and home health agencies.
What Are the Best Practices to Consider When Implementing Telemedicine?
Contrary to popular opinion, telemedicine is more affordable than in-person care, so if used appropriately, it boosts health and reduces costs. During the COVID-19 pandemic, legislation expanded coverage for telemedicine healthcare providers, so patients pay the same amount that they would if they got the services in person – for the Part B deductible to begin, the patient pays 20% of the Medicare-approved amount for the doctor. There’s no turning back, which means that telemedicine is part of the ecosystem and should continue to be crucial; progress is to proceed forward if people allow it.
To ensure that implementing telemedicine is a success, take into account these practical considerations:
1. Gain An Understanding of Feasibility and Risk.
Feasibility analysis is the foundation on which your plan resides. Do your best to understand the telemedicine solution’s feasibility before implementation. See what services can be delivered and whether reimbursements are available, as you might not have the necessary funding to support all the costs. Also, determine how the current state of the organization relates to the new program. Discussions provide essential insights into the changes needed to enhance organizational readiness.
2. Examine The Features of Each Offer.
The market offers various options for healthcare facilities to choose from, ranging from solutions that are easy to use to others with more comprehensive capabilities. Must-have features to look for in a platform include but aren’t limited to a user-friendly patient dashboard, appointment management, synchronous/asynchronous consultations, E-prescriptions, case sharing, and mobile device compatibility.
3. Test Before Implementing.
It’s recommended to test drive the telemedicine solution before implementing it in your healthcare facility. In other words, determine its qualities before subscribing to the telemedicine service – test the platform with a patient group to see if there are any issues to worry about. It’s paramount that functionality meets the requirements, i.e., check if the features behave as explained in the documentation.
4. Have A Discussion with Your Patients.
Of course, you must inform patients about what you’re about to do and document their feedback on a regular basis. Although you’re far from being an IT expert, get a better understanding of how the system works to troubleshoot common problems. Patient communication can be done via email, phone calls, and so on.
5. Actively Monitor KPIs.
To measure the success of your telemedicine program, you can use KPIs such as virtual patient wait times, provider adoption, patient satisfaction, scheduling statistics, and connection quality, to name a few. Once your healthcare facility has implemented the telemedicine offering, you have to monitor the aforementioned KPIs to ensure success.
Wrapping It Up
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution as far as telemedicine is concerned, so examine the unique needs of your patients before reaching out to a service provider. A telemedicine program can be a challenging undertaking, which is why you need a skilled leader and a dedicated team to ensure all necessary components are in place. The people in your organization will work together to improve outcomes, lower expenditure, and increase access to all the benefits of the system. Telemedicine will most definitely remain a long-term strategy within your care continuum. Don’t be surprised if you see variations of telemedicine services in the upcoming years as telehealth is rapidly evolving, so focus on education and planning.