With telehealth poised to become a roughly $2 billion industry within the next few years, Jacksonville, Fla.-based Nemours Children's Health System is using the technology as a "new digital front door" to draw new patients into the system for care and treatment.
Carey Officer, operational vice president of telemedicine at Nemours, and Sylvia Romm, MD, vice president of medical affairs at American Well, presented the benefits of telemedicine and its specific influence on Nemours' financial bottom line as part of a discussion during the Becker's Hospital Review 7th Annual CEO + CFO Roundtable conference, which took place Nov. 12-14 in Chicago.
Here are two thoughts from Ms. Officer and Dr. Romm during the discussion:
1. Dr. Romm said telehealth company American Well works with a number of hospitals nationwide to incorporate the technology and change the way patients receive care.
"We're working with a lot of different hospitals that are really trying to change the way patients think about coming in and really trying to delight the consumer … so that when they're thinking about accessing care, they can do it easily and in a way that makes sense with their schedule," she said.
"One of the things I like to say is that as a physician, we think about our workflow and how technology impacts that workflow. But patients have a workflow too — it's called life. We really need to figure out how to make sure that the technology is allowing care to come into their life in a way that makes sense for them," she added.
2. Ms. Officer discussed the merits of Nemours' telehealth network, Nemours CareConnect, which 95 percent of users gave a five-star rating. The program allows patients who visit any of the system's care locations to potentially be eligible for follow-up visits conducted via video conferencing.
"Telehealth is becoming ubiquitous across Nemours. If you go see one orthopedist in Delaware, you should be able to receive telehealthcare for a follow-up just as you should [be able to] in Florida. The key here is really [about] creating value for patients," Ms. Officer said, adding that telehealth saves families travel time and costs, increases patients' access to specialty care, and provides an overall improved patient experience.