Most providers understand what telemedicine is these days, yet there still seems to be a lot of skepticism on whether or not they should incorporate it into their practice.

Skepticism is normal, but we want to help providers, payers and practice staff understand that telemedicine really is the future of follow-up care. It has unmatched benefits to patients, health care practices, payers and the healthcare industry as a whole. (Check out our Direct Health provider pages if you’re interested in learning more about how you can incorporate telemedicine into your workflow.)

Why private practices need telemedicine

The benefits of telemedicine to patients

  • Convenience: Patients are just as busy as providers, and offering the convenience of remote visits to your patients is a huge selling point. Just think: they no longer have to mess with traffic, parking and waiting rooms (not to mention reducing the risk of exposure to the novel coronavirus).

  • Better health outcomes: By providing your patients with the option to do remote visits, they remain more engaged in their healthcare. Increased engagement has been shown to increase long-term patient health outcomes.
  • Increased access to specialists: If you’re a specialist, the convenience of incorporating telemedicine into your practice increases patients’ ability to access your care.

  • Reduced readmission rates: With telemedicine, patients adhere more tightly to treatment plans and general follow-up care. This results in reduced readmission rates and lower healthcare costs for your patients.

The benefits of telemedicine to a private practice

  • Increased patient care: With fewer cancellations and missed appointments, telemedicine visits actually increase the amount of patient care you’re able to provide.

  • Patient retention: For many patients nowadays, convenience is a huge selling point. By offering this via remote care, patients are more likely to stick with your practice versus switching to another.
  • Increased earnings: In most cases today (and as a direct result of the coronavirus pandemic), telemedicine reimbursement is mandated in all 50 states plus DC. Instead of making unpaid phone calls or dragging patients back into the office, telemedicine visits offer a reimbursable form of convenient care.
  • Improved administrative efficiency and coordination: By only scheduling in-office visits with those who require some sort of in-person physical consultation, providers maximize office and staff efficiency.

  • Increased patient acquisition: In the next several years, telemedicine is becoming a type of care patients will come to expect. By offering remote care now, your practice has a leg up on those practices not offering that convenience.

The benefits of telemedicine to our healthcare system

  • Greater patient access to care: It’s no secret that the supply of clinicians is dwindling. Telemedicine helps maximize a) patient access to care and b) physician resources, ensuring that the greatest number of patients possible are receiving quality care.

  • Reduced healthcare costs: By avoiding inefficiencies in the healthcare system and increasing patients’ engagement in their healthcare, general costs are reduced over time.

From this article, it’s pretty easy to see the everyone benefits from telemedicine. Heck, telemedicine even benefits insurance companies! It may take time but eventually every private practice will be offering remote care to their patients. It’s simple: our healthcare system needs it.

For information on how you can begin offering telemedicine to your patients as early as today, speak with one of our Telemedicine consultants by scheduling a demo or calling us now at (512) 866-8353.