As medicine and technology continue to evolve during a world-wide pandemic, healthcare professionals are finding ways to strengthen the “doctor-patient” relationship. – Joseph DeBlasio, MD
In order to provide comfort for our patients, we have merged technology and medicine via virtual visits. These visits allow physicians to connect with their patients via voice and video.
During a virtual visit, the physician is able to manage acute illness and chronic medical problems, discuss medications, and review prior imaging and lab work – all while maintaining a strong connection with their patients.
Patients can download an application to their smartphones or computer and, with a specific ID number, are able to join the video conference.
Virtual visits with your doctor can be helpful in many ways, despite some limitations. As a physician, while I am not able to physically examine the patient using this format, I am still able to provide comfort and advice over a broad range of medical topics.
During a time of panic, such as COVID-19, with extreme social distancing in place and many people quarantining at home, patients need the support of their doctor. With virtual visits we are able to answer questions from our patients while they are in the comfort of their homes.
We are hopeful that medicine and technology continue to grow together in the future for the benefit of all our patients.
Virtual visits are allowing us to stay connected with our patients during this difficult time. – Tobe Fisch, MD
The application we use is very easy to navigate, even for patients and providers who are not necessarily “tech savvy!” Connecting via the web or by using the mobile application is completed in a few simple steps.
We accomplish so much during video visits. We're able to see how patients are coping with chronic conditions while at home, go over any home monitoring and discuss issues that have arisen. If we identify anything that requires an immediate in-person visit, we can arrange that as well. Having a virtual visit for preventive care is also extremely helpful. We discuss preventive care that is needed and can “queue up” orders for when life gets back to normal. We review any new medical events that have occurred in the past year and talk about how patients are managing in the current crisis. Meeting virtually now will also help us avoid a huge rush of patients that need to come in right away when in-person visits resume.
While we also conduct telephone encounters for patients who are not able to connect via video, it’s great when we are able to have the video component as well. Seeing patients in their native environments establishes an added connection during the visit and has been an added plus for us as providers. We're able to see limited aspects of the exam and we get an overall impression of how well patients are feeling.
We are very much looking forward to when things are back to normal, but in the meantime we’re so grateful that we have this easy-to-use virtual way of connecting.