HJAR May/Jun 2020

40 MAY / JUN 2020 I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF ARKANSAS COMMUNITY HEALTH DIALOGUE COLUMN COMMUNITY HEALTH We often forget that good health care requires not only a diagnosis and treatment plan, but also a compliant patient. PATIENTS will generally act as a full part- ner in improving their health when 1) they understand their current health condition, 2) they accept that adhering to a treatment plan could improve their health, daily func- tioning, and projected lifespan, and 3) they have a close relationship with their medical providers. Patients crave providers who are knowl- edgeable, can be trusted, are credible, and are the kind of people they actually like. They want providers who are genuinely attentive, and make them feel that everyone is on the same team and in the same family. As we ride out this pandemic not quite knowing how rough it will get, telehealth may challenge some patients to trust some- thing other than an in-person visit for their healthcare. Telehealth is rightly expanding. It is filling in gaps during this time of social distancing, and this time when there are too few clinicians working in some parts of our nation. It is putting sick patients in the care pipeline, providing a greater continuity of care from diagnosis onward, and a system of remote monitoring to better manage pre- scribed care, and gauge patient adherence to that care. The American Telemedicine Association reports four basic uses of telehealth: • Live videoconferencing is an inter- active, online consultation between physicians, including specialists, and patients. Supporting that consultation are the physicians and/or allied pro- fessionals at sites nearer to where the patient lives, and where patients typi- cally are seen in person. • Storing and forwarding of diagnostic images, vital signs and/or video clips, along with patient data, allows for initial and recurrent review of those critical details. It equips a primary care or allied health professional with ad- equate information for rendering a di- agnosis. • Remote patient monitoring, including in-home telehealth, utilizes devices to remotely collect and transmit data to a home health agency or a remote fa- cility for interpretation. Such applica- tions might include specific vital signs and readings, such as blood glucose levels, electrocardiograms, or a variety of indicators of homebound consum- ers’ health. • Mobile health uses the internet, smart- phones, and other wireless devices for consumers to obtain specialized health information, and find peer-to-peer support among online groups reserved for specific categories of patients. As COVID-19 rages on, telehealth is be- coming critical to the care of all patients, not just those with coronavirus. Amid the current lack of appropriate medical sup- plies, the demands placed on an often al- ready over-burdened health workforce, the shortages of critical care and hospital beds, and the insufficient mechanisms for paying for care, we are indeed looking ever more toward telehealth. At the start of this pandemic, Dr. Cur- tis Lowery and Dr. Mark Jansen, the chief Amid COVID-19, TELEHEALTH IS CRITICAL to Healthcare Delivery and Patient Relations