5 Emerging Trends in Telehealth
Telehealth stretches far beyond video conferencing software that enables remote consultations with clinicians. It’s part of the overall telemedicine industry, which is any medical consultation that can be done remotely, and that extends to triage too.
Furthermore, the health industry is among the last industry to be disrupted by digital technology, but this time, it’s for the better!
The Top 5 Emerging Trends in Telehealth
1) Remote Consultations will be Mainstay
There will always be more medical professionals than there are patients to treat. Clinical time is extremely expensive. Estimations for the US can be as high $200 per slot missed. The total economic impact of missed appointments adds up to a substantial $150 billion per year.(1)
Automated reminders aren’t anything new. Dental practices and opticians have been using them for years. For in-person consultations, it’s highly likely that automated scheduling reminders will be used to reduce the cost of no shows.
Missed appointments are largely due to transportation problems, which remote video conferencing eliminates. As such, telehealth will see a resurgence of doctor’s home visits. In the 1940s, home visits would be as much as 40%. Today, they account for less than 1%.(2)
By adapting to video conferencing, home visits can see a comeback, for a low cost, just by doing the consultations remotely. It’s a return to the old-fashioned appointments, but driven by technology.
2) Telehealth Abortions See an Uptick
During the COVID pandemic, several states (and some countries around the world such as Australia(3)) introduced emergency legislations that enabled telehealth to be used to make mail-order abortions possible, negating the need to travel to a clinic to be seen by one or two doctors, depending on legislative requirements.
By adapting to telehealth, what is a very private procedure that’s made less invasive with a medicated abortion using mifepristone or misoprostol(4) within the first ten weeks of gestation is more accessible.
Meal delivery plans eliminate guesswork. If you order a meal plan for two people, you’ll get enough ingredients for two servings. No more, no less.
Negating the need for visits to abortion clinics makes the procedures even more private. As telehealth can be used by clinicians, there’s less risk of women self-managing abortions(5) by ordering similar drugs online. And since telehealth is faster than attending in-person appointments, the speed of prescribing medications is faster, sometimes as quick as next-day delivery.
3) Simplified Medical Insurance and State Laws will Help Telemedicine Thrive
Prior to the pandemic, only 26 US states had parity laws(6) stipulating that insurers reimburse the cost of telemedicine appointments.
Insurance companies are always slow to adapt their policies because obviously, they benefit from less inclusions.
As telehealth has been widely adopted around the world, there is increased awareness. With more people understanding how telehealth works and having experienced it first-hand, there’s likely to be more demand for insurance companies to include telehealth in their coverage, or perhaps even as a cheaper policy for telemedicine only as the costs are lower for clinics.
4) The Rise of Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) Devices
The RPM systems market is projected to increase approx. 128% by 2027 reaching a market size worth an estimated $1.7 billion.(7)
Among the most in-demand devices that are likely to remain that way are continuous glucose monitors, and digital blood pressure monitors. Both devices are used by diabetes patients (1 in 10 Americans(8) have diabetes) to monitor their condition and the reports can be shared with their physicians without requiring visits.
In addition to RPMs, there’s also platforms that combine telehealth technology with additional processes such as surveying customers for triage, providing educational videos to help manage conditions and monitor heart conditions. One hospital in Pittsburgh(9) to adapt early to RPM technology successfully reduced hospital readmission rates by 76% while maintaining a 90%+ patient satisfaction rate and compliance score. It’s results like those that’s going to see RPM devices remain common practice.
5) Enterprise Level Scaling of Self-Triaging Tools
Patients’ symptom surfing on search engines is likely to become a thing of the past. Expect to see a rise of professionally designed self-triaging tools(10) that’s based on pre-selected symptom surveys that direct patients to the most suitable healthcare provider.
Less traffic to WebMD and more focus on local health practices.
Examples could be non-urgent conditions being referred to a pharmacist for over-the-counter medications, or clinics for suspected STDs, ER departments for suspected emergencies, and doctor’s practices for hard to diagnose health conditions requiring investigating.
The core emerging trend is a wide scale adoption of telehealth across every aspect of the medical industry, and on a global scale.
Sources:
(2) https://www.empr.com/home/features/physician-house-calls-an-old-model-with-a-modern-day-twist/
(3) https://www.buzzfeed.com/ginarushton/south-australia-abortion-telehealth-coronavirus
(7) https://www.businessinsider.com/remote-patient-monitoring-industry-explained
(8) https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/basics/type2.html
(10) https://www.mobihealthnews.com/news/mckinsey-250b-us-health-spending-could-become-virtual
Author
Rudy
Rudy is a business consultant with a love for the latest tech, innovations and breakthroughs. He typically covers stories about exciting new tech products.