During these challenging times in a global pandemic, Telehealth has emerged as an effective and sustainable solution, bridging the gap between people, physicians and health systems. Although Telehealth has been around a decade, and it always was a convenient way to see patients remotely, never has the need for Telehealth been so high as today. In the midst of a highly contagious virus, Telehealth enables patients to stay at home and communicate with doctors through virtual channels. That is very effective for precaution, prevention, and treatment to stem the spread of COVID-19.

Telehealth is fueled by digital technologies, allowing the patient to relive the physician visit as a house call without the hustle and bustle of traveling. It also protects doctors across most specialties and service lines, from primary care to cardiology and orthopedics. All you need is an Internet connection.

With Telehealth, clinicians can extend their patient base beyond their facilities, extending hours, and creating new and more convenient models for their patients. This has potential to improve patient monitoring, especially for patients with long-term or chronic conditions. By using Telehealth to monitor patients remotely, the medical providers can engage them in self-care, improve outcomes, and still significantly cut costs.

Telehealth can be used to report patient metrics. A remote team acts as a coach and counselor as they engage patients in a journey toward health. It can increase clinical workflow efficiency by serving as the conduit for quicker prioritization of care delivery and improving communication. It allows you to capture and store patient data for better medical decision-making.

Additionally, Telehealth can reduce overhead costs per visit. The physician can bill for uncompensated phone calls as well as extend hours to capture more billable time. It saves time for the patient and provider and provides a competitive advantage at a time when this service is greatly needed and appreciated. For those reasons, it can also help medical providers attract and retain more patients.

Telehealth services may not work in every instance, due to limitations of a patient’s technology, or the need to examine the patient in person. For those instances, and at the provider’s discretion, patients can continue to be seen in the office. However, we’re living at a time when every visit should add “value.” So for a variety of cases, such as prescribing a more effective new medication, a revised practice designed to decrease inpatient stays, or virtual visits, Telehealth is immensely valuable to allow necessary practice improvements.

Telehealth offers a way for you to maintain your physical and mental health services, while complying with social distancing. At Athena MMG, we can help medical providers offer fast and simple telemedicine services – anytime, anywhere. We provide access to around-the-clock medical care in the comfort of your home or office. All you need is an internet connection and a tablet, phone, or computer. We are excited to be on the forefront of a new way to provide healthcare, which allows the patient and the provider to practice social distancing and remain safe and comfortable.