Opening the Door to Telemedicine With Broadband

Businesses of all kinds, from local stores to physicians' offices, tried to accommodate when the pandemic struck and everyone went into lockdown. Fortunately, this occurred at a time when technology was ready to handle the widespread change to everything being done remotely, and healthcare providers quickly learned to navigate and distribute telemedicine as a more common practise as more patients were ill and were recommended to stay at home. It's one thing to have a phone call or a low-resolution video chat with a friend, but visiting your doctor online about your health requires high speed.

We're barely scratching the surface of what telemedicine can be, and fiber-fed broadband has the speed and latency required to take us further while maintaining just as much, if not more, sensitivity to privacy and HIPAA standards as regular care. The pandemic propelled telemedicine into the mainstream of healthcare, but once people realised the benefits, they wanted it to stick around for good. As a result, now is an excellent time for broadband inventors to begin developing the images and techniques required for true diagnostic medical care. This is why:

We were driven into it by a crisis.

Even if there had always been a desire for telemedicine, it may not have grown into a large practise without the COVID-19 pandemic. Even the most traditional medical providers were forced to construct infrastructure and offer telemedical services as a result of the epidemic in order to maintain paying their doctors. Users of telemedicine, on the other hand, didn't have an option. Even the most apprehensive patient had no choice but to give it a shot.
After working from home on occasion during the last 25 years, either due to maternity leave or multiple operations, last summer was my first year as a telemedicine recipient, and I was able to watch the pandemic unfold in real time. They began giving phone conversations instead of office visits in March. By April, I was using my phone to hold video chats with my doctors. Instead of making many visits to and from the doctor's office while juggling my health and a business, I was able to call my doctor with a crucial update without ever leaving the house. This wasn't the case before COVID-19, but now that we've seen how effective telemedicine can be, we'll probably never go back.

It has a more personal vibe.

Once it was realised that telemedicine was the sole option, both the doctor and the patient felt more comfortable with it, even liking it. Doctors are now embracing telemedicine because it allows them to get more done without having to spend as much time in the office. Telemedicine allows doctors more time to create better personal ties with their customers, subscribers, clients, or patients, in addition to a better work-life balance.
Patients have become more involved in their own care as a result of telemedicine. I was about to leave on a business trip when I became aware of the onset of a bladder infection, but I knew it would require a thorough examination, diagnosis, and prescription to resolve. So I made a telemedicine appointment with my doctor. She took me through the procedures of a self-exam as I described what I was feeling because she had no way of evaluating what was going on inside of me. I obtained my prescription after the call and picked it up on my way to the airport - and I felt much more in control of my own health.

It is more accessible because to technological advancements.

Telemedical services will strengthen the healthcare system, and they will reach more people thanks to high-speed broadband. Our medical system is already short on doctors and nurses, but telemedicine allows us to make better use of the resources we already have. Doctors may now extend their service options even into rural areas and provide more treatment to more families, rather than serving a small area of patients who can drive to their offices.

In cities, circumstances may limit access to healthcare, but telemedicine alleviates those burdens as well, particularly in the management of chronic diseases. You can now make a telemedicine call from home instead of taking a day off to confirm the diagnosis of an obvious or recurring ailment at the doctor's office. For example, I showed a doctor over video chat an obviously infected bee sting on my leg with enough resolution for her to diagnose the condition, and all I had to do was drive to the pharmacy for a prescription.

I don't think of telemedicine as a replacement for in-person treatment, but as a system extension, it provides for better, more accessible care. So far, insurance companies and hospitals have collaborated well to avoid overextending telemedical services when in-person procedures are a better fit, but they're also discovering new areas where telemedicine is more practical. We may have been driven into it by the pandemic, but thanks to fiber-fed broadband, we're learning that telemedicine can provide more care in more ways for more people while maintaining their privacy. We shouldn't have to settle for less when it comes to something as crucial as our health.