A powerful ecosystem of telemedicine.

There is no doubt that telemedicine is the future, as demonstrated by the pandemic. It allows patients to receive quality care worldwide while minimizing unnecessary or unwanted interactions with others.

Meanwhile, implementing such solutions is hampered by a few obstacles. Among industry sectors, the healthcare sector ranks only sixth in terms of penetration of new technologies (leading sectors include media and entertainment, retail, manufacturing automation, and banking). However, this situation rapidly evolves, especially as IT giants introduce new technologies and ideas. Telemedicine is an area of increasing interest for companies like #Skype for Business, #Zoom for Healthcare, #Amazon, and of course, #Google Healthcare.

Even in the USA, telemedicine development varies significantly from state to state. It is important to remember that every place has unique characteristics and influencing factors. An excellent example of such factors is the underdevelopment of digital infrastructure or legislative issues.

Developed countries have made a significant breakthrough in telemedicine legislation with the pandemic's arrival.

A primary face-to-face consultation has been abolished in France; Hungary has extended the list of medical services available via telemedicine to almost all outpatient services.

In Norway, 95% of all family doctors offer virtual consultations; in Sweden, Kry (Kry - Great healthcare for everyone) has seen an increase of more than seven times in the number of people using it.

It never ceases to amaze me that the “Ping An Good Doctor” (Company Overview - Ping An Good Doctor (pagd.net)) platform recorded more than a billion visits during the pandemic in China. (As of 31 December 2021, the number of registered users on its platform exceeded 420 million!)

The first and most recognizable benefit of telemedicine is the ability to provide medical care over a wide geographical area. As for access and inclusiveness, there is an interesting fact: over 60% of people who sought care in the USA healthcare facilities during the pandemic were low-income but not high-income or tech-savvy.

The second benefit of telemedicine is its ability to reduce peak loads on individual hospitals by redistributing and referring patients to other hospitals and providers.

A third obvious benefit is a reduction in physical contact and the prevention of disease spread. As a final consideration, the statistics show that all people who started to use telemedicine became actively involved in improving their health. Access to medical care at a convenient location and time increases the willingness of patients to seek advice, undergo examinations, and follow doctors' recommendations.

All these factors have accelerated physicians' and patients' acceptance of remote healthcare services. The following numbers represent financial aspects: By 2023, the telemedicine market is expected to be over $200 billion, compared to $50 billion in 2019.

Currently, most European insurance companies are covering the costs of teleconsulting, whether through cloud platforms such as Kry (UK, Norway, France, Sweden, Germany) or TeleClinic or for physicians seeing "their" patients. Concerning the regulators - they have made the most significant changes. New laws on digital healthcare were adopted, and amendments were made to the social, civil, and direction on advertising medical products and services. A formal reimbursement procedure has also been established for public digital health applications and insurance companies in the USA.

According to a recent survey conducted among doctors of the largest walk-in clinics in the US, 60% view telemedicine favorably, and 76% think that remote healthcare services development will benefit patients.

According to a recent study conducted in Canada, the introduction of telemedicine could result in economic benefits of up to $4.5 billion annually by reducing travel time and costs. To my mind, this presents a unique opportunity for medical organizations and the states to provide medical care to the greatest number of people while enhancing life expectancy and, most importantly, improving the quality of care.

The US private #telemedicine industry has shown excellent results, both financially and clinically - the average wait for a video consultation with a doctor is only 5 minutes, and 92% of calls are resolved without an in-person visit. In addition to reducing hospitalizations by nearly half, telemedicine reduces absenteeism by 60%.

However, telemedicine is still a relatively new field. The benefits of telemedicine for patients, physicians, the healthcare system, and society are clear, but actions are needed to help physicians reorient themselves. The fast evolution of telemedicine depends on additional educational programs and direct financial incentives. Nevertheless, if you asked doctors around the world today how many virtual interactions with patients they expect to have in 3-5 years, based on the type of procedure, cardiologists will answer you that, on average, between 30% and 65%, dermatologists - between 45% and 60%, and even surgeons between 30% and 60%. My impression is that these numbers will continue to grow as technology advances.

When the pandemic began, even people who seemed far from technology began communicating via Zoom, ordering groceries from cafes, and ordering meals from restaurants with delivery.

Can't we expect that online video consultations, prescriptions, diagnoses, and delivery of medicines will become just as routine as talking to a doctor on a messenger? Growing demand leads to a growing supply, which, over time and with state support, will lead to even more advanced, positive, and "smart" technologies. We'll definitely see more remote patient services in the future!