For years upon years, doctors have been meeting with patients in-person to tend to numerous healthcare-related matters. Be it check-ups, assigning prescriptions, diagnosing an illness, or delivering test results, these consultations have more often than not been conducted in-person.
Nowadays, however, things are changing. Face-to-face consultations with doctors still exist, but no longer is it a requirement for such meetings to happen in-person.
If you are a doctor, you understand the importance of maintaining a personal connection with patients. You also know that evolving your practice is a key to delivering the best care possible. What if we were to tell you that welcoming a virtual medicine solution to your clinic can help you keep that personal connection, and move with the times?
Here is why doctors are now having video calls with their patients:
COVID-19
The COVID-19 global pandemic has taught society a lot of tough lessons, many of which we hope can help us be better equipped for future worldwide health crises.
At the height of the pandemic, people were still being affected by other ailments, many of which went undiagnosed – for a time – due to the inability to meet with their doctor.
Doctors who quickly embraced an online meeting platform (like Banty) have been able to see their patients much more readily during the pandemic, thanks to video meetings. With COVID-19 still impacting the healthcare system at the time of this writing, why not start conducting video calls with patients?
Keep Waiting Rooms Empty
Pandemic, or no pandemic, patients are concerned about visiting their doctor and being susceptible to other illnesses while sitting in a crowded waiting room. In some cases, this legitimate concern will keep some patients from seeing their doctor when they need to.
Turning to a telemedicine solution like video calling will help you minimize how many people frequent your waiting room. With such technology, you will be able to encourage patients with waiting room concerns – or those who are highly contagious but can be diagnosed virtually – to instead book a live video chat online with you.
Not All Appointments Need to (or Should) be In-Person
If patients are offered a virtual meeting with you, all involved can more easily determine if coming to the clinic for an in-person visit is necessary.
Now, if someone needs a prescription filled, test results, or has questions about a perceived minor medical issue, this can be dealt with over a video call.
Additionally, if someone is highly contagious and you are concerned about them getting others at the clinic ill, meet with them online first. This will safely help you determine whether or not an in-person visit to you, or a hospital, is required.
Convenience is Important for Patients
Unless a patient figures they have a serious medical issue, they will not want to take time off of work to go to a doctor’s office. This is especially true for workers who earn an hourly wage, and subsequently lose money when having to take an hour or two off for an appointment.
These patients – if able to book a doctor’s appointment online and participate in it within a video call environment – may be able to better massage their schedule. For example, they’ll no longer have to factor in commute time if their appointment can be completed using a video chat app.
The Technology is Available
Online medicine is happening, and has been happening for some time now. While not all virtual medicine platforms are created equal, ones like Banty Virtual Clinic provide healthcare practitioners with a secure and private space to meet with patients.
What’s more, these telemedicine-friendly online meeting platforms have been constructed in a way so that they are not intimidating to doctors, clinic staff, or patients. By keeping such technology straightforward, yet highly intuitive, those in the medical industry are being encouraged to give patients a better healthcare experience.
