Telemedicine Proven to Benefit Cancer and Diabetes Care

Like many people, I discovered telemedicine during the pandemic. I met with my psychiatrist virtually and settled on my couch instead of hers for the session. It makes sense that psychotherapy has easily switched to the online world.

Even more surprising is that telemedicine is frequently used in other medical areas such as cancer treatment. Chemotherapy and immunotherapy are usually given in person, but follow-up visits, medication and symptom management can be done virtually, said Leah, digital health director at Stanford Health Care in California. says Rosengaus. For cancer patients who are undergoing regular treatment, the hassle is greatly reduced. It may be even more meaningful for patients with a poor prognosis. “The Greatest Gift [we can] Give them time,” says Rosengaus.

Until March 2020, telemedicine programs accounted for less than 1% of all healthcare in the United States, but in March 2020, everything changed. Telemedicine surged as the pandemic restricted personal contact. (At Stanford University, it went from less than 2% of her visits to more than 70% of her visits in just a few weeks.) State and federal regulators are urging doctors to see patients in person before providing care. Relaxed rules requiring that insurance companies start covering virtual visits. Today, the use of technology such as video chat, secure messaging, and even plain old telephones to allow clinicians and patients to communicate seems to be entrenched. Many large hospital systems settle for 10-30% of patient appointments.

In general, the quality of telemedicine appears to be high.Almost 87% of the time, Mayo Clinic researchers reported in jam network open Last fall, the initial hypothetical diagnosis coincided with a subsequent direct diagnosis. Oncology and psychiatry have proven to be particularly accurate. Ear, nose, throat, and dermatology appointments rely heavily on physical exams, which was not the case. A 2022 study of more than 500,000 patients found that 13 out of 16 primary care interventions, such as managing diabetes and keeping flu vaccination appointments, were more likely to be out of telemedicine when compared to in-person visits. We found outcomes to be comparable or better.

Quality of care outcomes appear to be best in the specialties that use telemedicine the most. For example, endocrinologists love it because patients do their lab work separately and discuss the results virtually with their doctors. Surgeons use it to communicate with their patients before and after surgery.

Patient satisfaction with these visits is good, according to reports from large health systems. People say they love the convenience of virtual care. No transportation, no parking, no child or pet care to be arranged. Based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Sanford Health serves a wide range of rural communities. A patient who used virtual care is estimated to have saved him 2.5 million driving miles in 2022.

In some cases, technology is giving clinicians better insight into the patients they are treating. Jeremy Cowells, chief physician at Sanford University, said after an endocrinologist at his organization discovered how much more information about diet and habits could be gleaned from observing diabetics at home. , devotes several hours a week to making video visits to diabetics.

Of course, it depends on the person how much of their home life they want to show. Some patients don’t turn on their cameras in the living room, while others cheerfully show the contents of their medicine cabinets and refrigerators. “We have a window into the patient’s environment like never before,” says Rosengaus. “It reminds me of the days of doctors and house calls.”

Virtual visits are not for everyone. A large telemedicine study in 2022 found that patients in the office were more likely to take and take some medications, such as statins for cardiovascular disease. Starting a “lifelong medication” is a big decision and may be best suited for a face-to-face discussion, the authors suggest. Another study found that patients who had emergency hospital visits followed up by telemedicine rather than face-to-face were more likely to be readmitted.

Clearly, providers will need to fine-tune this technology to get the most out of it. The rest of us continue to find our comfort level (I show the medicine cabinet and draw the line). and create a better form of hybrid care, which they call “click and mortar.”

This is an opinion and analysis article and views expressed by the author or authors are not necessarily Scientific American.