Three Ways to Expand Your Telehealth Service 

Telehealth services have quickly become a cornerstone of medical care. Widespread adoption was accelerated following the COVID-19 pandemic, and today consumers report that they plan to continue to rely on telehealth to access care. In addition, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently made telehealth coverage for certain treatments and procedures permanent, solidifying telehealth’s role in the future of healthcare. Considering that consumers enjoy telehealth and CMS is reimbursing for telehealth treatments, investing in an expansion of telehealth services is a strong and timely move.

Below are our top three recommendations for expanding telehealth services in a way that best serves your patients and providers.    

1. Provide more telehealth carts

Access is a huge component of telehealth – and telehealth carts are a major component of access. If there are not enough telehealth carts available, patients in need of a remote consultation will either have to go without, wait until a cart becomes free, or rely on subpar and insecure technology. Telehealth software like Zoom Health can work on personal smartphones and devices, but should be delivered via a high quality, medical grade cart in order to provide the best possible experience for both patients and providers.

IDS has brought together the best hardware available in the healthcare industry to create our Virtual Care Series (VCS) Carts. We excel in helping healthcare facilities to determine where to deploy their carts in order to have the largest impact.  

2. Cross-Training

Another important component of telehealth is provider accessibility. You can have plenty of carts, but if you do not have providers who are comfortable using your telehealth platform, your patients will have no one to consult with. Cross-training providers to deliver both in-person services and telehealth services can go a long way in encouraging telehealth adoption across your organization.

3. Marketing

Once you have all of your telehealth components in place, make sure that your community is aware that you provide telehealth services! Consumers make decisions regarding their care delivery every day, and access to telehealth may be a deciding factor. Market your telehealth services and make sure your local community knows that they can come to your hospital or facility for high-quality, remote care.

To schedule a free consultation on your existing telehealth program and its future potential, reach out to IDS now.