Healthcare practitioners have always been welcoming to new technological developments that assure better care facilities for their patients. Telemedicine care is one such improved technological advancement that has played an important role in how patients interact with their physicians.
A survey by the Nemours Children’s Health systems showed that the telemedicine in the pediatricmedical field is steadily increasing. The online doctor’s consultation has increased by a whopping 125%, and the parent’s awareness about this new module has increased by 88% since 2014. This proactive acceptance of the telemedicine model has the potential to redefine how children are treated in the country.
Telemedicine is cheaper, and offers faster access to professional medical care. It allows for correspondence with experts without having to move out of your convenience. This move effectively eliminates the time spent in commuting to and from the physician’s location, which can instead be used for rest.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, parents are highly supportive of opting for telehealth services for non-fatal illnesses such as cold & flu, pink eye, rashes, etc. However, they are highly against using the same for chronic conditions such as asthma, ADHD, diabetes etc. Medical professionals are currently pushing for popularization of the telehealth services for chronic diseases as well, in a bid to increase their medical outreach.
Telemedicine increases the scope of health care access to children living in remote locations, thus reducing missed appointments, and increases accurate diagnose which result in proper treatments. Telemedicine is significantly cheaper than traditional doctor visits, while maintaining the same degree of professional medical help offered.
Telemedicine also helps doctors treat more patients in the same time frame. Since telemedicine is offered through a digital medium, the appointments can be fixed with clinical precision, thus reducing wait times for the physicians and the patients alike.
Apart from the obvious benefits, incorporating pediatric telemedicine is also expected to improve disease management and improve communication between the team of pediatricians and the patients.
One of the biggest hindrances to adopting any new technology is the high cost of installation. With pediatric telemedicine still in its infancy, incorporating new systems and training staff in the new methods of operation can run into high costs. However, these minor hurdles can be overcome in the near future.
Telemedicine can be made accessible to even small medical practices by improving the relationship between different medical facilities and small clinics. This partnership enables the smaller establishments to expand their services without expending much monetary resources.
At MedConverge, we help our clients to make the best of their pediatric telemedicine services by offering to take care of all of their administrative and digital data recording practices. This in turn allows physicians to make the best use of their time in treating patients.
References
- Can Telehealth Technologies Improve Pediatric Care? (2015, July 14). Retrieved May 05, 2017, from www.mhealthintelligence.com: http://mhealthintelligence.com/news/can-telehealth-technologies-improve-pediatric-care
- Commins, J. (2017, April 24). Pediatric Telemedicine Poised for Growth Spurt. Retrieved May 05, 2017, from www.healthleadersmedia.com: http://www.healthleadersmedia.com/technology/pediatric-telemedicine-poised-growth-spurt
- Gallegos, A. (2016, June 10). Pediatric telehealth programs are growing, diversifying. Retrieved May 05, 2017, from www.mdedge.com: http://www.mdedge.com/pediatricnews/article/109587/practice-management/pediatric-telehealth-programs-are-growing
