The COVID-19 pandemic changed health care as we know it. Telehealth and telemedicine software emerged as the new care delivery tools to aid patients and doctors who could not meet in person. It enabled doctors and patients to provide care through troubled times and social distancing norms. Key trends have emerged since, shaping the future of telehealth.

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What This Article Covers:

• What Is Telehealth?
• Types
• Trends
• Conclusion

What Is Telehealth?

Telehealth is a care delivery method in which doctors and patients meet each other through real-time video calls.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) defines telehealth, saying, “Telehealth — sometimes called telemedicine — lets your health care provider provide care for you without an in-person office visit. Telehealth is done primarily online with internet access on your computer, tablet, or smartphone.”

It works closely with videoconferencing solutions and medical software with messaging and video call features. In today’s age, health information technology provides access to all kinds of data circulating in the medical world. Telehealth leverages digital data and communication devices to remotely provide care services to patients.

Gadgets such as mobile phones, tablets and laptops are the backbone of telehealth. These easily accessible devices enable live video calls between patients and care providers. Telehealth is a boon for patients to stay at home or work and attend doctor’s appointments. It also reduces travel costs by limiting the need for in-person visits.

As time passes, technologies and modern innovation are fueling telehealth. According to a report published by MarketsandMarkets, the global telehealth and telemedicine market is expected to rise at a CAGR of 26.6%, reaching $285.7 billion by 2027.

Not only hospitals and clinics, but government agencies and insurance providers are also taking telehealth seriously.

Today, it is evident that telehealth and telemedicine are the way to go in the future. The business and clinical potential that it offers in health care are revolutionary. With modern technologies and continuous innovations, telehealth will emerge as a force to reckon with in the near future.

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Types

Telehealth provides a myriad of services across multiple medical platforms. From text messaging mental health professionals to video calling physical therapists, telehealth is proliferating quickly.

Let’s look at the different ways telehealth connects patients with doctors.

Synchronous Communication

Synchronous communication connects doctors and patients through real-time video calls with telecommunication technologies. It usually leverages phones, tablets and laptops to set up audio and video calls.

It offers a viable way for patients and doctors to have face-to-face conversations and exchange documents quickly. Doctors can also evaluate patients’ conditions in depth and make essential diagnoses.

Asynchronous Communication

This mode of telehealth is often called the “store-and-forward” method. Here, the concerned patients are not connected live. Instead, medical data is transmitted over separate time frames and are stored for review.

This works for care providers with limited bandwidth who can store patient materials to review later. Patients can also leverage this to connect with health care providers at a time of their choosing.

Remote Patient Monitoring

This form of telehealth allows care providers to record patients’ health vitals such as insulin levels, blood sugar levels, heart rate and more. It can fall under either of the two categories: synchronous or asynchronous.

Devices such as digital watches and activity trackers help care providers obtain patient vitals in real-time. The COO of Care Innovations defines remote patient monitoring in a video, saying, “Remote patient management is … about moving more health care out of the traditional setting, into the house, into where people live, work and play every day.”

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Trends

Telehealth has the potential to transform health care by reducing costs, improving patient outreach and more. Leveraging integrated mobile devices and HIPAA-compliant video conferencing solutions, it transcends the boundaries of traditional health care and allows it to adopt a hybrid model of care delivery.

Just as most companies worldwide are adopting a hybrid model, the medical world will also excel in improving patient satisfaction. We’ve covered some of the top trends regarding the future of telemedicine and telehealth below.

Digital-first Approach

Traditionally, the medical industry is slow when it comes to the adoption of digital technology. In fact, the storm of digitalization exerted its influence over health care much later than other renowned sectors.

However, the Coronavirus thoroughly disrupted the industry, and health care caught the olive branch as a last-ditch effort. Telehealth reigned supreme, and medical services are shifting to online channels.

Since then, companies and hospitals are starting to invest considerably in digital IT to boost telehealth and the proliferation of medicine. Therefore, we can safely say that digitization is here to stay.

mHealth

In today’s interconnected world, every person is connected through technology. In medicine, mHealth technology is emerging as a game changer. With mHealth, clinics can provide health care services to patients irrespective of the location at a low cost.

Since the dawn of the digital age, many mHealth applications are entering the market. After the pandemic, the innovation and advancement in mHealth devices has bolstered health care accessibility for patients. Today, we have digital wearables, watches, Fitbit trackers and more. It also plays a key part in remote patient monitoring which is one of the essential pillars of telehealth.

Artificial Intelligence

With technology advancing at a tremendous speed, artificial intelligence has become a commonplace term. As the medical industry continues to transform, telehealth became the newest member of the AI club.

The application of AI in telehealth and medicine, in general, is helping doctors and medical administration staff obtain real-time analysis and make informed decisions in no time. In addition, an AI algorithm can cross-reference medical images from past interactions and provide a detailed report on the severity of an illness to doctors.

Furthermore, AI can also play a key role in powering semi-autonomous robots that provide medication to patients on time without supervision. In the future, the aspects of AI’s application will only grow.

Interactive Experiences

Today, patients can directly participate and make important decisions about their health plans due to integrated medical devices. Medical professionals are looking for ways to improve patients’ clinical experiences.

Thanks to digital trackers and wearables, patients can remotely share their vitals with doctors. These devices help caregivers provide more medical options to patients and help them get the best care possible.

Further, doctors get access to patients’ health vitals and subjective data stored at the clinic, which helps provide an accurate clinical diagnosis.

VR, AR and Virtual Visits

VR and AR are new technologies making headway in the medical industry. Their applications benefit both doctors and patients. Currently, hospitals and clinics use virtual reality to educate new medical professionals through real-life simulations.

Today, patients are migrating to virtual visits as opposed to in-person visits at clinics. Patients can sit at their homes and attend doctor’s appointments without a sweat.

Chronic Care Management

With chronic illnesses rising in different patient populations, telehealth must bring its A-game to the field. These diseases include kidney disease, heart disease, cancer, lung disease, Alzheimer’s, diabetes and stroke side effects. However, patients don’t always adhere to treatment continuously, which leads to gaps in treatment.

Telehealth counters this by reducing health care costs significantly. With mHealth and remote patient monitoring, it boosts patient engagement and keeps them committed to receiving treatment constantly. It removes long wait times and allows patients to book appointments according to their needs. This increases patient satisfaction manifold.

Remote Pediatric Care

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, pediatric care is becoming essential for telehealth. It is difficult for doctors to examine a child through a video call as children often hide symptoms. Therefore, telehealth is seeing a growth in pediatric care where care providers can monitor children remotely.

With increased investment and innovation, pediatric telehealth care will rise.

Telepsychiatry

Anxiety, stress and tension cause depressive disorders and depression in adults. Therefore, the need for remote psychiatric and mental health care is paramount.

Today, psychiatrists, psychologists and mental health professionals can add telehealth treatment options to their expertise. Recent changes in telecommunication technologies are enticing care professionals to provide efficient mental health services remotely. The virtual bridge that telehealth has set up between therapists and patients will help mental health care services to rise.

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Conclusion

Since the pandemic hit, several emerging trends that allude to telehealth will see exponential growth in the future. The widespread adoption of telehealth by patients and care providers is a strong advocate for the fact that it has struck the correct chord with the masses.

It will make health care accessible, irrespective of geographic location and economic standards. Doctors can manage time better and see more patients at a time. Transferring reports between labs and clinics will also become more efficient.

That said, telehealth is not a replacement for traditional care delivery models. Instead, it offers an additional avenue for both parties to forge deeper relationships and improve health outcomes.

Telehealth has been a rescue board for health care during the COVID-19 pandemic, and with all the trends, we can safely conclude that the future of telehealth looks bright.

Which telehealth software do you use in your practice? Leave a comment.