Behind the Scenes of Remote Pediatric Care
*This is a collaborative post
A child has a fever just before bedtime. In years past, this usually meant taking all family members into the vehicle and going to an urgent care center (hoping the waiting room wasn’t too full). Nowadays, most parents simply log on to their computers or mobile devices and connect with a pediatrician at home.
In a matter of minutes, a doctor can speak with the parent, view a child coughing on camera, and direct a parent through the process of checking for a temperature or a sore throat. While it may seem like a simple video chat, there are multiple systems behind the scenes supporting the interaction.
Telemedicine: A New Way To Experience Pediatric Healthcare
Telemedicine has revolutionized how pediatricians interact with families and has replaced much of what used to happen in a waiting room.
Instead of having to take the child to the pediatrician’s office in the middle of the night, the family can stay in the living room while the child is examined via webcam on a computer or smartphone. The pediatrician may ask the parent to check the child’s temperature with a digital thermometer or to use the smartphone’s flash to examine the inside of the child’s mouth.
In addition to being convenient, the other advantage of telemedicine is reducing exposure to illness and allowing the pediatrician to evaluate the child sooner than if the family had to travel to the office.
Systems Behind the Video Calls
Several systems operate behind the scenes to support these video calls. These include:
- Scheduling Systems
- Secure Patient Records
- Payment Infrastructure
Scheduling Systems: Ensuring Appointments Happen On Time
Many clinics struggle to keep appointments on schedule, and even when patients arrive, there may be a delay because they cannot be checked in right away. Telemedicine solves this problem. When a parent schedules an appointment with a pediatrician online, the time is automatically added to the doctor’s calendar. This way, the doctor knows exactly when the appointment will start and how long it will take. The patient does not need to arrive early, nor do they need to fill out paperwork beforehand; all of the information is already available electronically.
Payment Systems: Processing Payments Automatically
Another problem associated with telemedicine is processing payment for services rendered without disrupting the conversation between the patient and doctor. One solution is to use a telehealth merchant account. When a parent schedules an appointment online, the payment is processed securely before or after the call. No one needs to present their credit cards or cash; the entire process is electronic.
Electronic Medical Records (EMRs): Providing Access to Information
Another layer of technology operating behind the scenes of telemedicine includes electronic medical records (EMRs) that allow pediatricians to access a patient’s complete medical history during a telemedicine visit. During a telemedicine session, the pediatrician may open a digital file to view a patient’s prior prescriptions, allergy alerts, immunization history, and other information. The pediatrician can also review previously entered notes from past visits.
Before EMRs, pediatricians were forced to rely upon paper files kept in filing cabinets. These files followed the patient wherever he went, and accessing the information required physically going to the file cabinet. With the advent of EMRs, patient information follows the patient, whether they see the pediatrician in person or via video conference.
Final Thoughts
Pediatric care today extends far beyond the confines of a pediatrician’s office. The seemingly simple act of making a video call to a pediatrician for a consultation often requires multiple layers of technology to work together seamlessly, including scheduling platforms, digital medical records, secure payment systems, and small diagnostic tools. Parents generally experience the benefits of these technologies only in terms of convenience. In contrast, the underlying technology continues to support pediatricians in providing quality care to children remotely, sometimes without requiring a waiting room.
