The need is enormous. Our country spends more on healthcare than does any other nation, a staggering $3.3 trillion annually. Money is largely going toward chronic—often preventable—diseases, including diabetes, heart disease, and back and neck pain. Until now, technology has been aimed at reducing costs by leveraging data collected from government mandated electronic health records (EHR), rather than toward actually making patients feel better by addressing the diseases that impact their well-being.
HealthTech Can Fix Financial Anomalies
Good care isn’t necessarily data driven, and it doesn’t have to be expensive for patient or providers. Providing care that prevents disease rather than treating it depends on building strong patient relationships and providing a reliable continuum of care that meets their changing needs. Traditionally this level of care has required providers to connect with patients beyond office hours, time that is largely non-billable. This time spent providing the care our patients need can contribute to $45,000 or more lost revenue per year. Leveraging the right technology can create the change we need, enabling us to provide accessible care while being compensated.
Better Care Prevents Reactive Care
We need technology, too, that is going to bring the best out of doctors—free us to doctor—and help maximize our impact instead of burying us under time-intensive obligations (forms, and more forms!) that keep us from interacting with patients. It’s estimated that half of doctors’ time is spent documenting care on EHRs, the time demand to document so high that we sadly often spend just minutes interacting face-to-face with patients.
When doctors aren’t available—physically and/or emotionally—patients turn to sources that almost inevitably fail them. Technology and new ways of thinking have led patients to seek healthcare advice or to self-diagnose through Google searches that often lead to black holes, revealing sometimes accurate, yet often irrelevant information. Urgent care centers and freestanding emergency departments play an important role and offer convenience, yet provide reactive care from medical providers who do not know those seeking their help.
Telehealth Creates a More Fulfilling Role for MDs
Our broken healthcare system is affecting providers as much as it is patients.
The American Medical Association reports that “the current state of the healthcare system is clearly driving increases in physician burnout at a higher rate.” Every specialty studied reports all-time high burnout rates, some physicians questioning their career choice and considering leaving the profession. Much of the burnout is caused by frustrations we discussed, like time spent on paperwork and the non-billable time required of us to stay connected in order to provide the continuum of care patients need. The right technology can give us back control of our profession, reduce those frustrations and stress levels, and enable us to be the providers we worked to become.
Conclusion
Clearly, our patients need us more than ever: Our population is aging, half live with at least one chronic illness, and the medications we prescribe to help them are more complex. As their doctors, we need to embrace new technologies, like telemedicine, that empower us to provide the care required while also building rewarding, profitable practices. Unlike many healthcare changes in the past, telemedicine gives us the unique opportunity to prioritize our interests and the health of our patients.
Dr. Samant Virk is Founder & CEO of MediSprout, a company focused on connecting doctors with their patients through innovative technology solutions. He is also a physician having practiced clinical medicine for almost 15 years, with a specialization in Neurology and Interventional Spine.
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