90
revenue. Investment opportunities in telemedicine will only increase as India and China open their
doors to telemedicine practices from the west.
5. Better Healthcare Apps:
In the coming years, we can expect more personalized telemedicine apps for both patients and
clinicians, with the flexibility to specify the information transmitted between doctor and patient.
Telemedicine app development also will give rise to mHealth, also known as mobile Health. Apps
such as MDLIVE, Amwell, MyTeleMed, and Express Care Virtual
will facilitate convenient
interactions between patient and physician.
Some of the upcoming trends in telemedicine include:
1.
Parity in Telemedicine to Become a Norm
In the US alone, more than 32 states have passed internal laws to allow for better parity in
Telemedicine. Both UK and Canada are set to follow suit as well. Upon actualization,
these laws
would allow physicians to be reimbursed by private payers for telemedicine visits at a rate similar to
in-person visits. This would not only help the said physicians, but also help in the rapid acceptance
and proliferation of telemedicine technology. In light of tougher regulations and programs which
limit patients to single doctor visits, such changes can be godsend.
Michigan state in USA has
already seen a 77.5% increase in Telemedicine encounters after supporting service parity in
telemedicine.
2. Consolidation Will Increase
Most small or medium sized healthcare practices are struggling to stay afloat in these testing times
due to inadequate expansion capabilities, stronger regulations, reduced reimbursements, and higher
costs. As a result, we can expect to see most of the small telemedicine operators either merge or get
absorbed by larger ones who have better financial stability to provide specialty telemedicine care.
Many hospital enterprises have also started buying such small radiology practices in order to
provide their telemedicine services
to even more patients, thereby reducing costs of operation.
3. Decentralized Care Will Become Commonplace
Today, we already see varied examples of specialty telemedicine healthcare moving away from
larger settings to more community-based and cost-effective locales. Many hospitals are already
looking to decentralize their niche offerings, especially Teleradiology with the help of community
extension services or by partnering with emergency care centers.
This would in turn also attract younger physicians who prefer telemedicine since they can keep the
work hours flexible and earn better pay at the same time. Therefore
decentralized clinical
telemedicine offers specialists around the world to see their patients without having to be present in-
person.
4. Patient-Centered Medical Homes to Become a Reality
One of the main reasons why telemedicine has enjoyed success is because of increased customer
satisfaction numbers. It is not only convenient and easy, but also saves time and costs for both the
doctors and patients involved.
As a result, we can expect to see a rise in the number of patients getting treatments right from the
comfort of their home, or being a part of a medical home which houses many patients with similar
symptoms and diseases for better treatment.
91
5. Proprietary Hardware and Networks to Go Out of Circulation
During
its inception, most hospitals and telemedicine operators used proprietary hardware and
technology to provide their services. But with the easy availability of secure software delivered in
an easy-to-implement manner, more operators are moving towards such affordable solutions.
Emerging network standards such as WebRTC also allow the healthcare providers to choose the
ideal care for their patients and the medium through which it can be delivered.
Many healthcare enterprises are also seeking specialty-specific telemedicine software which can be
easily deployed across a variety of hardware devices using open networks.
See more at:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2018/07/31/what-are-the-latest-trends-in-
telemedicine-in-2018/#2e8a8c466b9e
