The Covid-19 pandemic has stimulated much discussion in the medical world. There have been talks about the impact of limiting access to office visits, remote working, and maintaining social distancing. Telehealth services have been seeing a much more significant presence in medical clinics. This shift in availability has increased patient and clinician comfort with this form of care. More significant support has been found coming from insurance companies as a result.
How The Pandemic Affected The Future Of Healthcare
The changes that took place weren’t just how care was delivered. It was also in how healthcare was being consumed. Patients are taking a very different approach to how they consume healthcare services. The option for telehealth services is no longer considered a convenience. Most of today’s patients see this as a requirement of how they receive care. Having been shown a world where visits to the office are rarely needed, along with the commute and waiting times they entail, there’s little chance of returning.
Further, the majority of healthcare providers have made similar changes in philosophy. Seeing patients remotely has increased their availability to those they care for. They can see more patients in a day thanks to eliminating several factors involved in-office visits. Each patient visiting an office requires the treatment room to be sterilized. Fewer resources are used, which means less overhead for everyone involved.
The changing face of healthcare has led to the following topics becoming critical in service:
- Care Model Transformation – Where and how care is delivered is changing. No longer is the office the ubiquitous location for receiving healthcare. Lab tests are now being ordered from remote organizations like Quest and their competitors. Even radiology services are being outsourced to more convenient locations.
- Adoptions of Telehealth and Virtual Care – New methods of providing care via a remote format are being developed and integrated. These services are now an effectively mandatory part of delivering care. The forms mentioned above testing mean that clinics can serve a broader patient base. This has had the beneficial side-effect of improving access to care in rural areas.
These two categories include a broad range of changes altering the face of healthcare. It’s more important than ever that patients communicate their needs and how they prefer to consume healthcare services. Providers and patients can lay a hybrid path between telehealth and traditional office services to ensure everyone gets the care they need.
Speak To Your Provider About Telehealth Services
Communicating with your healthcare provider is an important way of ensuring you receive the care you need in the way you need it. Reach out to your provider and discuss how telehealth impacts how they deliver healthcare to patients like you. You may find that you have more convenient healthcare options that will match how you desire to consume healthcare. The future of healthcare is being formed today, be a part of it.
