How To See A Doctor When You Can’t Leave The House
As much as we try to stay healthy and stay at home, what can we do when we need a doctor’s advice?
Keeping a Safe Distance From The Doctor
We’re all practicing social distancing now. So what does that mean for doctor’s visits that don’t have anything to do with COVID-19? We (and our kids) still get strep throat, an upset stomach, and other ailments. But visiting a clinic or even the doctor’s office seems risky.
Like Zoom, But For Your Healthcare
New options to talk to a doctor about non-emergency illnesses are here so we can avoid waiting rooms (and packing sick kids into the car).
By now you’ve likely heard about ‘Zoom’ meetings – online video chats that schools, businesses, and families use to see and hear each other from smart phones and other devices.
Special video chat apps and services dedicated to connecting users to nurses and doctors are now popping up, too. These are being called virtual doctors, virtual care, tele-medicine or telehealth services.
Right For Today, Right For The Future.
It turns out that the convenience of talking with a nurse and then being connected to the right specialist with telehealth is more than a time saver – you may be saving lives. Some experts say by using telehealth for visits to diagnose or treat minor or common issues, you can help ‘flatten the curve’ of COVID-19 infection rates by freeing up medical staff and equipment for critically ill or injured patients.
Telehealth will stay relevant into the future, too. Many options are offered as subscription services with co-pays that are often lower than a visit to a clinic or doctor’s office – not to mention the time saved on trips to and from – and those waiting rooms! Some even allow for prescriptions to be sent right to your pharmacy.
