Future Of Virtual Primary Care In Healthcare For Patient Treatment

Future Of Virtual Primary Care In Healthcare For Patient Treatment

Virtual primary care in healthcare has a great scope in the future. It is because digitalization has taken over the world. People nowadays have access to almost everything in their hands- a smartphone and internet connectivity, that’s it. Other than this, a public health crisis like COVID-19 forced people to stay home to avoid coronavirus exposure. Due to this, telehealth primary care/primary care telemedicine software came into existence to offer needed diagnoses and treatment for patient’s acute illnesses. And keep on advancing during these years.

Now the tech-savvy generation prefers virtual healthcare through telehealth vs telemedicine not because it eliminates physical contact but also greatly saves time and money. In other age groups, people who have utilized and experienced the benefits of virtual primary care are turning 100% towards virtual healthcare. Therefore, it is certain that virtual primary care will grow in the future.

What is Virtual Primary Care?

Virtual Primary Care is the delivery of healthcare services by a doctor or healthcare provider to a patient via video or phone visits. It comprises 3 major components.

  • 24/7 urgent care
  • Chronic care
  • Preventive screenings

24/7 urgent care / virtual urgent care deals with patients’ unexpected visits for acute illnesses such as rashes, coughs, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, and bladder infections. During the virtual visit, a doctor can prescribe medication to treat the patient’s illness and send it to the patient’s pharmacy of choice electronically.

Virtual chronic care easily manages chronic conditions like diabetes, high cholesterol, and hypertension. In most chronic cases, the patient requires extensive counselling on nutrition, exercise, and alarming signs of complications. Thanks to virtual chronic care, patients can leverage easier, longer, and more frequent doctor visits to better manage their counselling needs. Also, patients experience the frequent need for lab tests in chronic care, such as LDL levels for high cholesterol and haemoglobin A1c for diabetes. However, these blood tests need to be performed in person, but a virtual primary care doctor can electronically send an order to a local, cost-effective lab facility near you to collect the samples.

Virtual preventive screenings with the patients can be performed or coordinated virtually. This can better be understood as questionnaire-based screenings with the patient during virtual visits. For example, screenings for depression and alcohol abuse. Or a virtual primary care doctor refers patients to a gastroenterologist for colonoscopy screening and women to a local imaging centre for mammograms screening.

How Does Virtual Primary Care Work?

Virtual primary care, which is a form of primary care, utilizes technology to provide patients with convenient face time with their primary care providers. Patients can leverage virtual healthcare wherever and whenever they want. The only thing they need is a smartphone, tablet, or laptop with good internet connectivity. They don’t need to leave their office early and beat the traffic to the doctor’s office. Or even wasting their time sitting in the waiting area.

However, the method remains consistent across the board, but not every virtual care provider needs to use the same approach. Therefore, while choosing your virtual patient care provider, always look for the practice that better resonates with your health goals.

virtual care provider that offers complete support for your health and well-being is always the best option. You wouldn’t get access to only a primary care provider, but also to its whole care team. The care team deliberately listens to every person to know their health concerns and delivers a personalized experience to every unique person.

Other than this, the patients can easily connect with the entire care team through an app. They can have a video chat with their clinician anywhere, anytime. Message for health guide with a quick question, send a photo or request for a prescription refill in no time. This is the most convenient way to get the care you deserve through virtual primary care.

Why Use Virtual Primary Care?

Primary care has already showcased its significance in improving patients’ health and lowering healthcare costs with early detection and treatment of diseases like cardiovascular disease and cancer. However, in the last two years, only 33% per cent of people mark their presence with primary care physicians. This showcases a higher reduction in in-person visits post-COVID.

The reason is that people don’t want to visit a doctor’s office. To make a doctor’s office visit, they have to take work off or arrange for childcare, travel and wait there in a waiting room. This induces a lot of patient time and money. According to a study, many doctor visits cost over $100 on a high-deductible health insurance plan.

On the other hand, virtual primary care is quite easier to access and less expensive comparatively. The patients can conduct doctor visits at home, at work, or even in their parked car. It can benefit employees with 0 out-of-the-pocket costs like an onsite clinic, near-site clinic, or direct primary care. Virtual primary care simply reduces barriers and increases access to patient care.

What is the Future of Virtual Health?

The future of healthcare is rapidly evolving into an environment filled with virtual health options. The days of remote locations preventing patients from receiving expert consultations are long gone; in the future, ordinary examinations will be carried out from the convenience of an office chair or a patient’s home. This paradigm shift has the potential to completely transform patient participation and healthcare delivery. It is being driven by developments in white label telemedicine technology. Healthcare providers can remotely monitor chronic illnesses and take preemptive action and provide real-time data.

Artificial intelligence will become a powerful tool with the capacity to evaluate massive information, customize treatment plans, predict future health issues, and optimize resource allocation. Wearable technology and remote monitoring tools will enable patients to actively participate in their health journeys. Eventually, virtual health will strive to go beyond basic convenience and democratize access to high-quality healthcare in order to provide a more connected, data-driven, and preventive healthcare environment.

Original Blog Source: https://www.vcdoctor.com/blog/future-of-virtual-primary-care-in-healthcare-for-patient-treatment/

In case you have found a mistake in the text, please send a message to the author by selecting the mistake and pressing Ctrl-Enter.
VCDoctor Telemedicine Software 2
VCDoctor- the best Telemedicine Platform is developed to grow in the dynamic world of technology and the Healthcare sector. We ensure to fulfill our clients’ re...
Comments (0)

    No comments yet

You must be logged in to comment.

Sign In