Telehealth Becoming a necessity

While Covid-19 pushed practices to improvise hasty solutions for remote visits, Telehealth is now established, with more robust security, more powerful capabilities, and easier adoption. Here are nine critical advantages of telehealth technology that can revolutionize how you deliver care while also significantly improving patient outcomes and your bottom line.

1. It’s not a difficult task.

Telehealth, contrary to widespread assumption, is not difficult to set up. Plug-and-play technology connects to your EHR, making it simple to set up and communicate with patients. You’re up and running in seconds after flipping a switch within the platform.

2. It is cost-efficient.

Setting up Telehealth requires very little upfront expenditure, especially if you have an integrated HER software. Reimbursed Video telehealth encounters can replace unpaid follow-up phone calls or emails. You and your employees save time and money by not commuting, and you need less office space. Some mental health practices have switched to virtual-only consultations, removing the need for an office entirely.

3. It is pretty compelling.

You can see more patients during the day by using virtual visits. Administrative activities take up less of your time. Patients can make their appointments, which saves time for your front-desk staff. Telehealth allows you to keep your current office process for scheduling, charting, and invoicing while also decreasing the need for in-person patient attention for things like check-in and room assignment. Telehealth is fully linked with EHR, so virtual visits are documented just like any other service in your practice, and advanced features like electronic prescriptions and lab orders are available. All of this adds up to extra time for actual patient care.

According to many providers, no-shows, which irritate staff and eat into income, are said to be significantly reduced with Telehealth. End-to-end encrypted auto texts are sent to patients to remind them of their appointments so they don’t forget. Transportation, time off work, and child or elder care are all significant roadblocks that Telehealth overcomes. Telehealth sessions are usually on time, saving patients and providers’ time.

With features of new large-group capabilities, which allow telehealth sessions for groups of up to 100 people, efficiency increases enormously. EHR makes conducting group sessions, live webinars, and consulting on calls more manageable. Participants can travel to secure breakout rooms for more intimate discussions using Telehealth, which saves time in documentation.

4. It has a positive impact on patients.

Telehealth is quite popular among patients. They do not need to reschedule their appointments to visit their provider. They also don’t have to leave the comfort of their own home, which is especially crucial if they are housebound, disabled, or contagious. Patients can receive care outside of traditional office hours because telehealth visits can take place at any time and from any location, giving essential reassurance and quick, individualized responses.

Telehealth allows clinicians and patients to stay engaged in the meeting while seeing notes, charts, lab results, and educational materials. Telehealth’s personalized emails and SMS reminders are generally less intrusive than a phone call.

5. It has a positive impact on patient outcomes.

According to a study by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, telehealth interventions improved patient outcomes, especially for chronic conditions like cardiovascular and respiratory diseases and psychotherapy, by lowering mortality and hospital admissions and improving the overall quality of life.

According to providers, patients who have rapid and straightforward access to their clinicians are more likely to stick to treatment programs, participate in lifestyle counseling, and correctly manage their prescriptions. Similarly, providers express their gratitude for being able to see the patient’s daily activities.

During a telehealth visit, physicians say they like seeing the patient’s home environment and physical condition. EHR provides extra information on elements the patient may overlook or situations that need to be addressed, such as safety problems, disruptive noise, or the need for daily living help, among other things.

6. It generates additional revenue.

When you start performing video visits, all of that time you spend on the phone or writing emails becomes billable cash. More group sessions can be offered in mental health practices, boosting the return on a practitioner’s time (see below for more on group meetings). When you connect to EHR software Patient Statements, patients can pay their copays or deductibles before or after the visit with only a few clicks. During visits, office workers had fewer opportunities to request money or run credit cards. That’s why it’s critical to choose a telehealth solution that works flawlessly with office management software and accepts credit card payments via remote electronic payment.

7. Things are improving all the time.

When the Covid epidemic struck and lockdown, telemedicine became a must-have in the medical field. Early adopters of telehealth rely on ad hoc alternatives such as Apple FaceTime, Facebook Messenger video chat, Google Hangouts video, Zoom, Skype, or even Skype landlines or cell phones. Because of practical reasons, HIPAA authorized “non-public facing” options for a while.

However, this is rapidly changing. Telehealth is now common place. Patients are no longer satisfied with consumer-type communications that are unreliable in terms of security. They want integrated platforms with access to charts and other records throughout the stay. They’re looking for high-definition video. As a result, telehealth solutions are getting more powerful and complex, with improvements that make it more like an in-person visit.

Take, for example, group gatherings. Previously, patching in a participant frequently resulted in a dropped call, and transmission quality deteriorated as callers increased. Typically, only a few people are allowed to participate. A telemedicine meeting Telehealth may accommodate up to 100 individuals. The personalized waiting room is an improvement. When patients arrive, they “knock” to let you know they’ve arrived.

Practices that don’t want to go all-in on Telehealth might choose from various options. “This increase was attributable to an increased need for mental health care during the epidemic.”

8. it’s particularly beneficial for mental and behavioral wellness.

“Telemedicine makes mental health services more accessible because it lets patients escape the stigma and receive therapy in the privacy of their own homes,” according to the Journal of Global Health.

For example, Stroke Magazine released a study that demonstrated the benefits of tele therapy in reducing anxiety in stroke patients. The journal Current Treatment Options in Psychiatry emphasized the value of Telehealth in improving “access to care for hard-to-reach and underserved individuals with limited mobility owing to mental, physical, or geographic problems.” Tele mental Health lowers or eliminates the need for patients and physicians to travel, and it provides distant services at a low cost while retaining high quality.

As a result, the importance of Tele mental Health increases in times of public health crises and national and international emergencies .”

Because tele mental Health has increased dramatically since the epidemic, proven efficacy is critical. “Telehealth visits for outpatient mental health and substance use services went from virtually zero percent in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic to a peak of 40% in mid-2020 – and continued to account for more than a third (36%) of such visits in the six months ending in August 2021,” according to KFF and Epic Research. According to the research, this increase was due to an increased demand for mental health treatments during the epidemic.

Since the peak of the epidemic, the tendency for Telehealth has been strongest in psychiatry. According to McKinsey, telemedicine replaced up to 17% of all outpatient office visit claims, but the figure is 50% in psychiatry and 30% in substance abuse.

9. It helps you plan for the future.

No one can say when (or if) another pandemic will strike or how it will spread. COVID-19 is not the last of its kind, according to experts. Other disasters, such as wildfires, tornadoes, floods, or wars, might easily disrupt healthcare delivery methods. Having a solid telehealth infrastructure in place. It helps to improve brand identity.

Having a solid telehealth system in place might help your clinic prepare for unexpected events. The technology is so valuable and affordable that it is likely to become commonplace shortly. Telehealth ” is a part of the routine and integrated service supply, medical training, and the profession of medicine,” according to Health Science Reports, and “its widespread acceptance will bring healthcare delivery into the twenty-first century.”

With technological advancements and a changing healthcare scene, there are few drawbacks to using Telehealth. Maybe it’s time to look at a robust, integrated telehealth solution if you want to streamline your business, increase profitability, and provide patients more of what they want.