what is telehealth?

In recent days, there has been a significant development in the field of Telehealth. Due to its accessibility, convenience, and capacity to stop the transmission of contagious diseases, Telehealth has become popular among many hospitals and offices, particularly after the worldwide breakout of COVID-19.

What is Telehealth?

Telehealth or telemedicine is the process of delivering medical consultations and services using technology and without physically visiting the patient. Telehealth technologies of this modern age can help small clinics in providing their patients with exceptional healthcare services. If healthcare practices fully understand telehealth services and everything related to them, they can use the technologies to become more efficient and productive than ever in producing clinical and financial results.

Factors contributing to the rise of telehealth

Convenience & Accessibility

Telehealth defies geographical obstacles, allowing patients to get care regardless of the location. This is especially beneficial for those in underserved or rural areas.

Cost-Effectiveness

Telehealth is budget-friendly as it significantly reduces costs for both providers and patients by eliminating the traveling costs and overhead expenses associated with in-person visits.

Improved Patient Experience

Patients can more easily stay in touch with their healthcare providers with telehealth, leading to better management of chronic diseases and overall health.

Telehealth Versus Telemedicine

Let’s talk about the standard terms used in healthcare facilities such as telehealth and telemedicine.

Telehealth

Telehealth consists of different services that are provided remotely. In this healthcare practice, there is no patient-doctor relationship. Social workers, nurses, and pharmacists usually provide these services. For example, healthcare providers give remote support to their patients in addressing health difficulties, medication, social support, and patient health education. In this way, they not only provide convenient and feasible support to their patients but also drive potential revenue growth to their practice, expanding their client base.

What Is Telemedicine

Telemedicine involves utilizing the latest technology for communication to ensure efficient service delivery relating to diagnostic, medical, and treatment. Usually, healthcare providers utilize telemedicine. For instance, they check the progress of the patient’s treatment and conduct laboratory tests. The basic purpose behind telemedicine services is to render healthcare services to patients at their doorstep.

Telehealth versus Telemedicine

Telehealth Telemedicine

Comprises an array of remote clinical and non-clinical services. Telemedicine is part of telehealth.

It contains services provided by healthcare professionals, healthcare workers, pharmacists, educators, and front-line workers. In telemedicine, it is the only healthcare professionals who have an active role.

It includes a comprehensive patient-physician conversation. It is only limited to patient-physician dialogue.

Telehealth includes a wide lab test report, training, healthcare education, and collaboration between the healthcare sector and technology. It is only restrained to the digital sources of services provided by healthcare providers.

In telehealth, communication and tracking services help patients with chronic conditions. Telemedicine only expands the range of provider coverage.

Types of Telehealth

Although there are various forms of telehealth, three main types prominently exist in today’s medical industry. Each category offers benefits and can support you and your patients in several ways depending on what you need to get a full scope of their health.

Telehealth may have different forms, but three main types dominate today’s healthcare landscape. Each type can benefit practitioners and patients in different scenarios.

Three major telehealth types are:

1. Live Video Conferencing
2. Asynchronous Video (AKA Store-and-Forward)
3. Remote Patient Monitoring

Live-Video Conferencing

Live video conferencing is an important telehealth. It is also called real-time interactive telemedicine. Live video conferencing is the most used form of telehealth in the medical industry. As its name suggests, video conferencing is a two-way interaction between a patient and a doctor. All physicians’ practices and hospitals can utilize it to deliver their services. Telemedicine minimizes the time and distance to deliver patient care. Patient-care services are provided via phone, messaging, or video conferencing apps. The practices and physicians provide video-conferencing care to attend to patients in emergencies.

Asynchronous Video (AKA Store-and-Forward)

Asynchronous is also called store-and-forward telemedicine. This type of telehealth is also used to provide healthcare services to patients at their doorstep where physicians are unavailable. This practice is often used in remote areas without enough medical facilities. The patient documentation and medical data, such as laboratory reports, images (MRI scans and X-rays), sound and video studies, etc., are transferred electronically in this form of telehealth. Electronic health records (EHR) exchange and store patient data.

Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM)

Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) is also one of the most used types of telehealth. It is used to remotely check the medical condition of patients using innovative medical equipment such as wearable devices (heart monitors, smart shoes, skin patches, or smartwatches). This type usually helps healthcare providers examine the patients’ condition involving chronic diseases such as asthma, heart disease, etc.

Surprising Facts About Telehealth

• According to a survey, 85% of Indian healthcare providers used telemedicine on a daily basis during the pandemic.
• According to McKinsey, there has been a potential increase in virtual visits and consultations in telemedicine, increasing from 11 % in 2019 to 76% in 2020.
• A Merritt Hawkins survey found that 48% of healthcare providers opted to choose the option to treat their patients via telemedicine.
• According to gov, telehealth visits saw a 154% rise in March 2020 compared to the same period in 2019.
• According to a recent report, the telemedicine industry worldwide is projected to be worth USD 42.5 billion in 2021 and USD 73.2 billion by 2026, expanding at a CAGR of 11.5%.

Potential Of Telehealth

Technology has played a largely significant role in improving the quality of healthcare. Technology has also enabled people to get easy access to health care. Telehealth is a wonderful addition to making healthcare better coordinated, more efficient, and closer to home. You can go to virtual visit anywhere such as in your car or the comfort of your home. And you don’t need to undertake far and troublesome traveling to get health care.

Telehealth has brought about an incredibly surprising change in the healthcare system. If you are sick or don’t like to travel, with the use of telehealth, you can get healthcare within the comfort of your home. Many healthcare providers also prefer telehealth as it is convenient for them to provide comprehensive treatment to their patients without involving traveling and physical efforts.

One of the major benefits of telehealth is that it offers you a convenient choice to meet the specialists who live away from where you live.

Limitations of Telehealth

There is no denying the reality that telehealth has proved a blessing for both patients and healthcare providers with its numerous amazing options it has emerged with. But at the same time, certain limitations to it can cause counterproductive impacts. Healthcare providers cannot do a proper physical exam in person and may prescribe inappropriate drug use, unnecessary care or overuse of medical care, which can negatively impact diagnosis or treatment.

Cost is also a factor limiting the potential benefits of telehealth services and insurance reimbursement for telehealth varies from state to state and type of insurance in the U.S. However, insurance companies consistently keep expanding telehealth services to provide the patient with the best possible healthcare at their doorstep.

Effective internet accessibility or mobile devices also make a huge difference while those not having access to them may not benefit from telehealth. There is an alternative option for people having no access to interest, who can use wireless internet available in public places to get access to telehealth services. For instance, community centers or libraries offer wireless internet designed for virtual visits that can take place in private rooms.

Sometimes technology faces disruptions, leading to inconvenience both for patients and doctors, that’s why healthcare providers must have an alternative system in place to call patients by phone if a virtual visit is not available.

How Telehealth Helps Physicians

Telehealth simplifies the care delivery process for healthcare providers and practices. It is an immediate way to render the services at the patient’s doorstep. As a result, providers can carry out maximum checkups, accelerating revenue collection.

Here’s how healthcare providers use telehealth to gain maximum benefits:

Patient-Centric Care Delivery

The thing that categorically defines the most immediate concern of healthcare providers is patient-centric care delivery. Telehealth enables physicians to render online services with the help of teleconsultation solutions. Telehealth integrates patient records into electronic health records (EHR) to provide patients with convenient information and prompt access to their needs. In this way, telehealth ensures exceptional patient care, making healthcare practice more efficient and trustable among the patients.

Better Consultation and Collaboration

Telehealth has significantly transformed the healthcare industry. It has made the consultation and collaboration process more efficient and seamless. Patients, doctors, and nurses can collaborate. For instance, telehealth helps them develop collaboration in the follow-up process. In addition to that, telehealth provides real-time access to doctors, facilitating patients to consult with healthcare providers on complex issues without hassle.

Fast & Efficient Service Delivery

It is one of the top priorities of healthcare providers covering a wide range of areas to render fast healthcare delivery, especially to patients residing in rural areas. Telehealth has reduced the distance from doctors to patients or patients to doctors, as physical presence is no longer essential. Doctors can remotely contact their patients, using video-conferencing and other technological and advanced resources to check and provide patients with medications and prescriptions. Thanks to telehealth which has made healthcare service delivery fast and accessible.

Exceptional Patient Engagement

Excellent patient engagement is crucial for the success of a healthcare facility. Telehealth empowers patients to remain engaged, using innovative tools such as computers, smartphones, and other digital devices. These devices help patients book online engagements, make payments, take consultations, etc. With the use of telehealth technology to make video conferencing or audio calls, patient engagement with doctors becomes more seamless and convenient. The patients can consult and share medical test reports with the providers. Patients while using these platforms can also download medical reports for future use. Finally, it would be right to say that telehealth has drastically enhanced patient engagement.

Maximized Revenue

The basic purpose of telehealth is to decrease the overall cost of care. It enables healthcare providers to reach out to a wide range of new patient groups outside their cities and towns, so they can earn more money. Moreover, teleconsultation simplifies the follow-up process for patients, potentially attracting clients who might otherwise skip follow-ups once their health improves, thereby increasing revenue opportunities. Additionally, the facilitation of telehealth of second viewpoints can result in a new source of income.

Resultantly, healthcare providers can expand their client base by using these virtual solutions.

Reduced Patient No Shows

Healthcare facilities experience potential negative financial and operational impacts because of no-shows by patients. According to hospital officials, it is essential to contact the patient again to reschedule any canceled visits. This consumes extra time the employees would otherwise have utilized in something more productive.

Thanks to the digital ease telehealth has provided which facilitated patients to view doctors’ availability and independently rearrange appointments. As a result, telemedicine gives both doctors and patients more flexibility and feasibility.

Enhanced Patient Satisfaction

Virtual services of telehealth facilitate the development of a strong doctor-patient relationship. With it everything becomes convenient for patients such as making online appointments and paying bills online etc., patients who use telehealth save money on travel costs and time on doctor appointments. This ultimately results in improved patient satisfaction and enhanced overall patient experience.

Telehealth Reimbursement Simplified

In a KLAS-CHIME study from October of last year, over 50% of respondents from 104 healthcare facilities highlighted that limits on reimbursement restrain their ability to expand telehealth services for patients. Medicaid and Medicare offer distinct degrees of flexibility, while private payers represent fluctuating funding levels.

Difference Between Telehealth and Telecare

You might have often heard people asking what telehealth care or is if telehealth and telecare are the same. Mostly the two terms are used interchangeably but there is a small difference between the two. Telehealth refers to comprehensive healthcare services while telecare is focused on support, safety, and daily care.

Telehealth Reimbursement

Medicare	Medicaid	Private Payers
Medicare, a critical provider of care for patients who derive significant benefits from telehealth, enforces strict eligibility criteria for reimbursement. Payments are limited to services rendered in designated Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) or non-metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs), ensuring that resources are directed to underserved and rural regions. Additionally, Medicare imposes stringent regulations on the organizations and locations permitted to offer telehealth services. For comprehensive details on eligible providers, approved locations, and covered services, the Telehealth Resource Center (TRC) serves as an invaluable resource.	Chiron Health states that Medicaid programs in 48 states reimburse telehealth services provided via live video systems, whereas Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) is covered by Medicaid in only 19 states. Seven states allow permits for all three categories of telehealth, while 12 state programs fund store and send telehealth. Compared with Medicare, Medicaid is more telehealth-friendly, but the regulations controlling payment through state programs largely differ. For instance, when getting telehealth care, some states require the patient to be at the hospital rather than at home, while others need the patient to be co-located with a licensed healthcare provider.	Although lots of states have legislated regarding telehealth parity laws, no federal requirement mandates private payers to pay for telemedicine services. Under parity regulations, payers are required to pay for the same telehealth services as those delivered in person. In addition to that, they mandate that payers reimburse for telehealth services at the same rate as in-clinic services.

Given the number of advantages, we have discussed above, telehealth is helping healthcare facilities and individual healthcare providers expand the spectrum of their client base. In this regard, Pro Medical Billing Solution is the most feasible option to drive significant financial growth and stability to your practice. Our extensively experienced professionals have discovered some of the most productive ways to improve billing in telemedicine. We effectively ensure accurate reimbursement, maintain compliance with telehealth regulations, and streamline financial processes to help you transform your vision into a reality.

FAQs

What is Tele Health?

Telehealth is the broader use of technology to deliver healthcare services, including medical care (telemedicine), health education, patient monitoring, and administrative support, remotely.

What is Tele Healthcare?

Telehealth care refers to the delivery of healthcare services remotely through technology, such as video calls, phone calls, or mobile apps. It allows patients to consult with healthcare providers without needing in-person visits.

What Is Telemedicine?

Telemedicine is the use of technology to provide medical consultations, diagnoses, and treatment remotely, typically through video calls, phone calls, or online platforms

How does telehealth improve access to healthcare services?

Telehealth connects patients to healthcare providers remotely, making care more accessible, especially in rural or underserved areas.

What are the benefits of telehealth for chronic disease management?

Telehealth allows for regular monitoring and consultations, improving outcomes for patients with chronic conditions.

How secure are telehealth platforms for patient data?

Most telehealth platforms use advanced encryption and comply with privacy regulations like HIPAA to protect patient information.

How can Pro Medical Billing Solutions optimize revenue for healthcare providers?

Answer: Pro Medical Billing Solutions enhances revenue by ensuring accurate coding, reducing claim denials through rigorous audits, streamlining billing processes with advanced software, and offering personalized support to address specific provider needs.