By Kavya Pillai (Class of 2025)
Every aspect of life in the 21st century has been affected or influenced by technology. Whether it’s through transportation, productivity, access to healthcare, communication, or the many other aspects, we have grown accustomed to the heavy integration of technology in our daily lives. Technology has made its way towards the health care system, and its growing use has been denominated by the term “telemedicine”.
While many people refer to the Internet to self-diagnose or seek more information about their symptoms, technology has also been implemented in professional medical practice for communication between patients and doctors. With the rise of this new form of medicine, it is important to consider the positive and negative consequences of its application.
As the COVID-19 pandemic placed a strain on in-person doctor visits, the reliance on telemedicine came to a peak. Telemedicine circumvents this obstacle by allowing patients to receive medical attention without risk of contracting the virus in a hospital or clinic. Telemedicine may also increase patient attendance to appointments as the time for transportation and waiting for a doctor is reduced, making online visits easier to fit in a busy schedule.The use of telemedicine in recent years has increased convenience for patients which leads to a decrease in failure to attend (FTA) rates. The study conducted by Snoswell and Comans analyzes this relationship between FTA rates and telehealth modality. (2) The primary reasons for FTA occurring are the patient’s difficulty in remembering or traveling to appointments. However, the results of the study showed that telehealth has the possibility of reducing the FTA and would be an appropriate alternative to in-person appointments. Another benefit of telemedicine is the ability of specialty doctors to consult patients who live far away. Patients thereby have better access to medical specialists who can specifically cater to their needs regardless of physical distance .
While telemedicine has numerous advantages, there are many concerns about the integration of technology into the healthcare system. The patient must have a level of comfortability with the doctor to share all their concerns and this kind of relationship is harder to establish over a call. Empathy is one of the largest characteristics a physician must have and communicating that support and reassurance over the means of technology is not as effective as an in-person visit. In addition, while the patient may mention their symptoms , the physician is only able to assess what is shown and not the full picture. The doctor may accidentally give the wrong treatment plan as they are only seeing a portion of the patient. They also must observe through a screen which may detract from their ability to feel or see any issues more accurately. Furthermore, telemedicine may also create a threat to the privacy of patient information. With information being communicated through the internet, the likelihood of security breaches increases. Patient confidentiality should be highly prioritized and with the increasing use of technology to share personal information, there are many potential threats of information leaks. A review by Grigsby examines the effectiveness of telemedicine considering factors such as costs, effectiveness, policy issues, and more. (3) The study concludes that there is potential for the use of telemedicine to affect the treatment services in a multitude of ways; however, with the constant changing of technology and its applications, it is difficult to assess what the actual implications of it are. The research also mentions how past experiences have shown “unanticipated consequences” and these would drastically affect the health care system.
Living in a society where technology is nearly implemented in everything, and the increasing costs, smaller budgets, and further issues within healthcare, telemedicine has been used more as a means of communication. With the COVID-19 virus, this new type of care has been given increased importance; however, the question arises whether the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. In a rapidly changing society where technology is constantly being improved and increased, it is necessary for us to consider at what point should technology not be integrated—and whether that point is telemedicine.
References
Benefits of telemedicine. Johns Hopkins Medicine. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/treatment-tests-and-therapies/benefits-of-telemedicine
Does the choice between a telehealth and an in-person ... (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/tmj.2020.0176
Grigsby, J., Kaehny, M. M., Sandberg, E. J., Schlenker, R. E., & Shaughnessy, P. W. (1995). Effects and effectiveness of telemedicine. Health care financing review. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4193577/
Mehta, S. J. (2014, December 1). Telemedicine's potential ethical pitfalls. Journal of Ethics | American Medical Association. Retrieved from https://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/article/telemedicines-potential-ethical-pitfalls/2014-12
While many people refer to the Internet to self-diagnose or seek more information about their symptoms, technology has also been implemented in professional medical practice for communication between patients and doctors. With the rise of this new form of medicine, it is important to consider the positive and negative consequences of its application.
As the COVID-19 pandemic placed a strain on in-person doctor visits, the reliance on telemedicine came to a peak. Telemedicine circumvents this obstacle by allowing patients to receive medical attention without risk of contracting the virus in a hospital or clinic. Telemedicine may also increase patient attendance to appointments as the time for transportation and waiting for a doctor is reduced, making online visits easier to fit in a busy schedule.The use of telemedicine in recent years has increased convenience for patients which leads to a decrease in failure to attend (FTA) rates. The study conducted by Snoswell and Comans analyzes this relationship between FTA rates and telehealth modality. (2) The primary reasons for FTA occurring are the patient’s difficulty in remembering or traveling to appointments. However, the results of the study showed that telehealth has the possibility of reducing the FTA and would be an appropriate alternative to in-person appointments. Another benefit of telemedicine is the ability of specialty doctors to consult patients who live far away. Patients thereby have better access to medical specialists who can specifically cater to their needs regardless of physical distance .
While telemedicine has numerous advantages, there are many concerns about the integration of technology into the healthcare system. The patient must have a level of comfortability with the doctor to share all their concerns and this kind of relationship is harder to establish over a call. Empathy is one of the largest characteristics a physician must have and communicating that support and reassurance over the means of technology is not as effective as an in-person visit. In addition, while the patient may mention their symptoms , the physician is only able to assess what is shown and not the full picture. The doctor may accidentally give the wrong treatment plan as they are only seeing a portion of the patient. They also must observe through a screen which may detract from their ability to feel or see any issues more accurately. Furthermore, telemedicine may also create a threat to the privacy of patient information. With information being communicated through the internet, the likelihood of security breaches increases. Patient confidentiality should be highly prioritized and with the increasing use of technology to share personal information, there are many potential threats of information leaks. A review by Grigsby examines the effectiveness of telemedicine considering factors such as costs, effectiveness, policy issues, and more. (3) The study concludes that there is potential for the use of telemedicine to affect the treatment services in a multitude of ways; however, with the constant changing of technology and its applications, it is difficult to assess what the actual implications of it are. The research also mentions how past experiences have shown “unanticipated consequences” and these would drastically affect the health care system.
Living in a society where technology is nearly implemented in everything, and the increasing costs, smaller budgets, and further issues within healthcare, telemedicine has been used more as a means of communication. With the COVID-19 virus, this new type of care has been given increased importance; however, the question arises whether the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. In a rapidly changing society where technology is constantly being improved and increased, it is necessary for us to consider at what point should technology not be integrated—and whether that point is telemedicine.
References
Benefits of telemedicine. Johns Hopkins Medicine. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/treatment-tests-and-therapies/benefits-of-telemedicine
Does the choice between a telehealth and an in-person ... (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/tmj.2020.0176
Grigsby, J., Kaehny, M. M., Sandberg, E. J., Schlenker, R. E., & Shaughnessy, P. W. (1995). Effects and effectiveness of telemedicine. Health care financing review. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4193577/
Mehta, S. J. (2014, December 1). Telemedicine's potential ethical pitfalls. Journal of Ethics | American Medical Association. Retrieved from https://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/article/telemedicines-potential-ethical-pitfalls/2014-12
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