{"id":33227,"date":"2021-10-06T07:05:40","date_gmt":"2021-10-06T11:05:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/centricconsulting.com\/?p=33227"},"modified":"2021-12-16T10:33:11","modified_gmt":"2021-12-16T15:33:11","slug":"virtual-healthcare-is-the-future-if-organizations-can-clear-these-hurdles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/centricconsulting.com\/blog\/virtual-healthcare-is-the-future-if-organizations-can-clear-these-hurdles\/","title":{"rendered":"Virtual Healthcare Is the Future \u2013 If Organizations Can Clear These Hurdles"},"content":{"rendered":"
Many healthcare<\/a> organizations are working on advancing virtual care options. That said, the path to digital healthcare transformation is bumpy.<\/p>\n Covid-19 forced healthcare organizations to make a huge leap forward in their digital transformation<\/a> roadmaps. Although many companies had plans on the books to advance telemedicine, the crisis revealed that virtual care<\/a> is not only possible but in many cases is also preferred by patients<\/a>. Virtual care also offers an opportunity to enhance patient experience, improve population health, reduce costs and improve the work life of health care providers \u2014 the quadruple aim of healthcare.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cTo improve patient outcomes, we have to involve a patient\u2019s family and significant others in their care, because it must extend beyond the four walls of the hospital,\u201d says Dr. Reetu Singh, senior medical director, clinical documentation integrity at AdventHealth<\/a>. \u201cWith virtual care, you are providing that care continuum, and therefore providing better outcomes. And that\u2019s the future \u2013 this is what patients want. Our future is technology. We have to be at the forefront and provide care where our patients are; we need to go to patients instead of patients coming to us.\u201d<\/p>\n Many healthcare organizations are working on advancing virtual care options. That said, the path to digital healthcare transformation is bumpy \u2013 more so than for other sectors.<\/strong> Healthcare was already lagging in adopting virtual models, and the realities of patient care, reimbursement and privacy concerns add significant complexity.<\/p>\n The future of healthcare is most likely a hybrid model<\/a>, where patients receive a mix of virtual and in-person care. This shift to hybrid care could ameliorate some of the major problems in the U.S. healthcare system. For instance, the U.S. has a shortage of primary care clinicians, which means it can be difficult to get an appointment. The shortage is especially acute in rural and impoverished urban communities. Many patients end up turning to urgent care or emergency departments, far costlier than a standard office visit.<\/strong><\/p>\n The good news is that many signs point to the future of healthcare being hybrid, with patients receiving a mix of virtual and in-person care:<\/p>\n The insurance side is jumping on board, too. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service (CMS) approved dozens of new telehealth services last year, and payers are beginning to offer virtual-first health plans, where patients first see a virtual provider before making an in-person appointment.<\/p>\n Although hybrid healthcare offers a lot of promise, organizations have major hurdles to overcome to complete a true digital transformation.<\/p>\n Perhaps the biggest challenge is making the virtual patient experience seamless and fully integrated with in-person healthcare services. Say you have a virtual checkup, and your doctor orders a blood test. Unlike when you\u2019re in the office, you\u2019re going to have to take some extra steps to get that test completed \u2013 a potentially big friction point. Virtual care providers must figure out how to integrate with testing organizations to make the experience easier, similar to the big push to make at-home Covid screening possible.<\/p>\n The development of increasingly sophisticated remote patient monitoring and diagnostic tools will help improve the experience. There are already a lot of tools on the market to make the virtual healthcare experience easier.<\/strong> For instance, Kencor Health has a digital assistant that reminds patients to take their vitals and automatically shares that information with their clinicians.<\/p>\n Virtual, artificial and augmented reality will play an important role in connecting the virtual and in-person experience, too \u2013 the healthcare augmented and virtual reality market is expected to reach over $16 billion<\/a> by 2027. To share just one example, Healthymize<\/a> is an app that uses artificial intelligence to monitor patients\u2019 voices to screen for respiratory diseases such as pneumonia and asthma.<\/p>\n The digital divide is another problem healthcare faces in the transition to hybrid models. Although virtual healthcare can improve access for underserved populations, what happens when those patients don\u2019t have internet access or can\u2019t afford the mobile phones or other remote monitoring tools needed to make virtual healthcare work?<\/strong> What about patients who may not be comfortable navigating the technology? Care and insurance providers must figure out a way to design a hybrid healthcare experience that doesn\u2019t leave segments of the population behind.<\/p>\nThe Case for Permanent Hybrid Healthcare<\/h2>\n
\n
Big Challenges On The Road to Hybrid Healthcare<\/h2>\n
1. Hybrid Healthcare Must Offer A Seamless Patient Experience.<\/h3>\n
2. Hybrid Healthcare Must Consider the Digital Divide.<\/h3>\n
3. Hybrid Healthcare Requires A Smart Organizational Strategy.<\/h3>\n