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The COVID-19 crisis elicited enormous disruption in the healthcare sector and hastened the sector for investing more in innovative novel technology. Few health-tech platforms achieved momentum during the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak and are anticipated to alter the future of medicine. Digital health advancements are vital driving forces behind health equity. Telehealth is one such novel digital health trend that is helping to enhance health equity worldwide. [1]
Telehealth is the utilization of digital communication technologies like tablets, laptops, desktop computers, and mobile phones for supporting virtual care. It involves interaction among patients and caregivers via e-mail, telephone, video chats or conferences, remote devices, Internet for expediting the delivery of healthcare services, information, and education. Patients can easily use telehealth technology to connect with medical care providers who can diagnose, monitor, and treat a myriad of chronic and acute conditions. [2,3]
Originally developed to offer basic care to rural and underserved patients, the application of telehealth in healthcare practices has increased since COVID-19. [3] As social distancing decreased in-person visits, the medical care providers had to promptly pivot to virtual care. [1] Advancements in medical care information technology together with the expansion of access to healthcare services have triggered telehealth growth. Escalating emphases on improving patient satisfaction, offering quality care, and reducing costs have also triggered the rapid implementation of telehealth. [3]
The goal of telehealth is better access to healthcare while reducing medical expenses. [4] Numerous telehealth technologies are being adopted as a cost-effective way to deliver quality medical care services. [3] Read on to explore more about this revolutionizing digital health trend to understand its importance for health equity and how it will define the future of healthcare.
Why Telehealth Matters?
Over the past few years, telehealth has altered the way medical care is delivered. You can now talk to your doctor or other healthcare personnel from the comfort of your own home, without wasting hours in the waiting room. Telehealth provides a wide array of other benefits and focuses on creating a better future with better health equity for everyone. [1]
Let us dive a little to explore the potential benefits of telehealth!
Increases access to healthcare:
Telehealth has expanded access to medical care resources. [1] It helps people living in remote and rural areas to procure high-quality diagnostics, consulting, and treatment. [5] Medically vulnerable people and people without any transportation or healthcare personnel in their local area can also readily access healthcare services. [1]
Reduces anxiety and stress:
Access to medical care can be enhanced when patients and their families get the opportunity to get telehealth care at home when compared to in-person care in a hospital or clinic. [5] For example, Tele-dentistry enables patients to consult a licensed dentist with the help of a mobile app without visiting the clinic. By sharing photos of their teeth, they can get a personalized consultation to improve their oral health. [6]
Virtual care also minimizes the level of anxiety and stress experienced during hospital visits. It also decreases waiting time. Thus, doctors can handle more patients every day. [2]
Higher patient engagement rates:
Online reviews and digital reminders result in higher patient engagement rates. [2] People having chronic conditions who require frequent checkups can arrange remote appointments, if no in-person tests are needed. [1] People who miss clinic appointments due to mobility challenges, transportation issues, or disabilities can also attend appointments from any accessible device or location. [2]
For example: With the help of a wireless pad and disposable electrode patches placed on the abdomen of a pregnant female, healthcare personnel can monitor the vital signs of both baby and mother remotely to minimize unnecessary physical interactions. [6]
With Telehealth, you can also:
Such level of engagement keeps patients more vigilant, healthier, and more likely to look for intervention before their condition become more critical. [2]
Improves patient outcomes:
One of the most thrilling benefits of telehealth is a significant improvement in patient outcomes. [2] Telehealth reduces patient-reported complications, increases patient satisfaction, and may aid to decrease mortality rates. [2,3] It improves the quality of care by boosting efficiency, accessibility, immediacy, flexibility and affordability of medical care. Furthermore, it enables timely communication between patients or families and the consulting doctor. [5]
With consistent communication, caregivers can foster their association with patients and evade any negative consequences as a result of delayed or missed appointments [1] This enables self-management and important adjustments that may prevent hospitalization. [5] Using remote patient monitoring technology, the challenges around monitoring heart disease, diabetes, elevated blood pressure, and musculoskeletal and behavioral health have been successfully met. [2]
Reduces risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection:
Rather than making costly and unnecessary hospital visits, people with acute health issues can now get immediate care without putting themselves at risk of SARS-CoV-2 exposure. [2] Telehealth has the potential to prevent any sort of direct physical contact between medical care workers and patients, offer continuous care to the community, and decrease morbidity and mortality in SARS-COV-2 outbreak. [8]
Telehealth can also safeguard patients who are at raised risk for COVID-19 complications. [2] This technology-based virtual platform thus maintains continuity of care without magnifying the risk of infection exposure. [9]
Cost-cutting:
Another profound benefit is cost-cutting. The telehealth platform enables prompt and more efficient medical care in lower-cost settings. It enables providers to reduce costs by minimizing the distance and time needed for treatment. [2] It also minimizes transportation costs, that often burden patients of low socioeconomic status. [4]
Telehealth Challenges
Telehealth enables doctors to evaluate, diagnose and treat patients virtually [10] Though patients and medical care professionals have enjoyed the benefits of telehealth. However, its widespread adoption has been impeded by many barriers. [3]
Provider telehealth challenges include:
Patient telehealth challenges include:
Future Directions
Medical care and technology go hand-in-hand. Telehealth includes health care services like medical education and research, wireless health applications, remote monitoring of patients, patient consultation using videoconferencing, and transmission of medical reports with the help of video and audio technology. [3]
People want an easy and consistent digital experience to get medication, arrange appointments, and procure important communication and advice on their health. Telehealth, instead of being a passing health trend, is anticipated to become a significant component of a comprehensive medical care plan that will aid to improve the experience of patients and doctors. [1]
The disastrous dissemination of COVID-19 stimulated the requirement for rapid and effective solutions to combat viral infection. From this perspective, the use of telehealth technology can aid to reduce the burden of doctors and national healthcare systems. This digital platform can facilitate patient diagnosis and management. [5]
It continues to attract massive investment and make healthcare services more affordable, effective and accessible for everyone. [1] The use of telehealth should be promoted as a way to deliver chronic, acute, primary and specialty care. [11] Instead of considering telehealth as an experimental option, the healthcare institutions, providers, and patients must completely embrace it for optimizing and improving the efficiency of healthcare service. [1,5]
However, the promising benefits of telehealth far outweigh the small hurdles that may be faced during the adoption of telehealth technology. [2,9] Regardless of these barriers, the acceptance of telehealth technology will likely continue to escalate as patients and providers become more comfortable with using this technology rather than face-to-face interactions. [3]
References:
1. Digital Health Trends 2021: 5 Technologies That Will Define the Future of Healthcare. Available from: https://masschallenge.org/article/digital-health-trends
[Last accessed on: 30 October 2021]
2. Telehealth: Benefits and Challenges to Consider When Implementing the Healthcare of the Future. Available from: https://welkinhealth.com/telehealth-benefits-and-challenges/
[Last accessed on: 30 October 2021]
3. Gajarawala SN, Pelkowski JN. Telehealth benefits and barriers. The Journal for Nurse Practitioners. 2021 Feb 1;17(2):218-21.
4. Mechanic OJ, Persaud Y, Kimball AB. Telehealth systems. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2021 Sep 18. PMID:29083614. Bookshelf ID: NBK459384
5. Senbekov M, Saliev T, Bukeyeva Z, Almabayeva A, Zhanaliyeva M, Aitenova N et al. The recent progress and applications of digital technologies in healthcare: a review. International journal of telemedicine and applications. 2020 Dec 3;2020.
6. 10 innovative examples of telehealth in action. Available from:https://www.philips.com/a-w/about/news/archive/features/2021/20210401-10-innovative-examples-of-telehealth-in-action.html [Last accessed on: 30 October 2021]
7. Telehealth: The Advantages of Telemedicine. Available from: https://www.cloverinternalmedicine.com/blog/telehealth-virtual-care
[Last accessed on: 30 October 2021]
8. Monaghesh E, Hajizadeh A. The role of telehealth during COVID-19 outbreak: a systematic review based on current evidence. BMC Public Health. 2020 Dec;20(1):1-9.
9. Telehealth benefits & challenges. Available from:
https://www.healthstream.com/resource/blog/telehealth-benefits-challenges
[Last accessed on: 30 October 2021]
10. 7 Trends Shaping the Future of Telemedicine in Healthcare. Available from: https://appinventiv.com/blog/top-telehealth-trends/
[Last accessed on: 30 October 2021]
11. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Using Telehealth to Expand Access to Essential Health Services during the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/telehealth.html
[Last accessed on: 30 October 2021]
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