Banty Co-Founder and Medical Director, Dr. Richard Tytus, provided the subject matter and direction for this article. The author would like to thank Adam Grant for his editorial assistance in writing the article. Dr. Richard Tytus takes responsibility for the content of the article.
Without question, virtual medicine is the way of the future. Although it already existed prior to COVID-19, the global pandemic certainly encouraged more and more medical clinics to begin offering telemedicine services to their patients.
Apart from the practicality of online medicine and its ability to keep an in-person waiting room from getting overly crowded, this technology can also energize a clinic.
Yes, it will take a good amount of work and clinical team training to implement such services, but the eventual reward is a medical practice that feels shiny and new again.
These are the five ways virtual medicine can energize your medical clinic:
New Patients Arrive
Believe it or not, some medical clinics – despite witnessing telemedicine’s growth – have opted to continue offering only in-person appointments. This, unfortunately, doesn’t benefit the demographic of patients who are now much more interested in virtual visits.
As a result, some patients will look around for a new clinic that offers online doctor’s appointments and transfer over to you. Once this begins to happen on a regular basis, it will be tough for those at the clinic to not feel excited about how allowing for online doctor visits has greatly increased business.
Possibilities are Expanded
One thing patients and clinics alike need to remember is embracing virtual medicine doesn’t mean in-person appointments need to be totally eliminated. Such appointments will always have a high-level of purpose to them.
But, bringing in a telehealth solution to the practice expands the possibilities of how patients can be cared for. Minor matters that require just a five to 10-minute appointment can be done online instead of asking a person to trek into the clinic. Additionally, when inclement weather hits, appointments do not need to be cancelled outright – some can be transferred over into an online environment.
The Routine is Changed
In any profession, hitting a rut is always a possibility. Most of the time, this feeling has been brought on by a routine (even the positive kind) feeling stale. If you’ve only been treating patients in-person for the entirety of your career, you may one day find yourself interested in exploring other treatment methods.
This is what’s especially great about virtual medicine: you still get to provide exceptional care to your patients, but now you get to do it in a new and exciting online atmosphere. What’s more, you don’t have to be at your clinic to have these appointments.
If you have a home office, or a private space at your cottage, you can perform a video conference with patients no matter where you are physically situated. Such flexibility is tough to not be enthused by.
New Knowledge is Gained
As a medical professional, you love to learn. You understand that gaining knowledge whenever and wherever you can, will serve you well moving forward. Thus, learning how to have a productive and engaging live video chat online with a patient will certainly give you a boost.
Importantly, your clinical team will also need to expand their horizons and understand the features and processes associated with your virtual medicine solution. If a patient asks them about how to see a doctor online, they should be able to explain that properly.
While everyone learns at a different pace, the more knowledge a practice gains should result in a reinvigorated medical office that runs like a well-oiled machine.
Your Practice Gets a Facelift
No one ever wants to feel like they are out-of-date, or no longer in-touch with important facets of their industry. One way to avoid this as a physician is to host video calls with patients.
While the physical aesthetic of your brick-and-mortar clinic may remain the same, the practice as a whole will feel modernized and much more rousing than it used to be once telemedicine finds a spot within it.
Tap here to learn how Banty can add a whole new dimension to your medical clinic.
