Hospital Corner

Telemedicine. What is it and why are we hearing about it in the news and online lately?

It’s not new…in fact, some sources say it started in the 1950s; although we’re not sure exactly what that looked like.

Since the beginning of the doctor patient relationship, healthcare providers have constantly adapted and overcome time, distance, and provider resource challenges. From house calls on horseback, to the modern healthcare system, and now telemedicine, providers have pressed on to meet their patient’s needs.

In the times past, it was not uncommon for the doctor to be the only non-contingent in the room. They would make their house calls in spite of the risk to themselves or what was going on in the world around them.

With the outbreak of COVID-19, we’re all doing our part to social distance and healthcare providers are no different. With telemedicine there are multitude of benefits to patients. First and foremost, with COVID-19 on everyone’s mind right now, is no exposure to potentially contagious patients. No more sitting in the waiting room and no travel expenses. No need to locate childcare or senior care while you attend your doctor appointment.

The terms telemedicine and telehealth are often confused. Telehealth is broad term that includes remote healthcare related services like, administrative conferences, provider training, and education. While telemedicine specifically refers to remote patient services, e.g., a video conference between a healthcare provider and their patient or in the case of a child, the parents. Think of it like a modern-day house call, and the good news is that your health system has been performing telemedicine for years, and we are now ready to incorporate clinic visits into our telemedicine offering.

How it’s done and what you will need. At Columbia County Health System, our clinics in Dayton and Waitsburg, have partnered with Zoom Video Communications to make telemedicine possible for you. Zoom is completely free to use, extremely user friendly and secure.

To access this on-line communication, you’ll need one of the following devices: smart phone, tablet, laptop or desktop computer. It is important that what you have is equipped with a camera, microphone and have an internet connection. Once you have those items, you can call either the Waitsburg Clinic or the Columbia Family Clinic and schedule an appointment just like you have done in the past. Our staff will walk you through the process, send you an email invitation to the appointment and you’ll be set.

If you would like to know more about the Zoom platform or learn how to sign into a meeting go to the Zoom website at https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-Joining-a-Meeting and watch the video.

We would love nothing more than to see every patient face to face in our clinics as often as they like. However, considering the contagious nature of COVID-19, until social distancing is lifted, we want to minimize your exposure, and ours by using the telemedicine services as often as necessary.