In Episode #37 of Wimmer’s Wilderness Podcast I covered telemedicine and its importance before and especially now during the Covid19 Pandemic.
So what is it? Telemedicine is providing clinical services remotely through phone, medical messaging, or virtual visits. Sometimes the term is confused with telehealth. Telehealth encompasses training, meetings, education, and clinical services.
Telemedicine has been around for nearly 80 years. That seemed like a bit of stretch to me as well when I first read the story of radiology images being sent 24 miles through the telephone lines in Pennsylvania from the 1940s. It has evolved through many variations at Universities around the world then adapting to modern technology.
From the first phone calls of doctors to patients or vice versa, then into medical messaging and virtual visits, telemedicine has changed and transformed the way healthcare is delivered.
Those first phone calls and virtual visits today share something in common. A fear by the patient that their information would not be safe. An image comes to mind of Doc Baker in the Little House on the prairie calling a patient when the first phones arrived to tell them the result of some test or sharing a medical concern.
The first phone systems went through switchboards, and those operators would be able to listen in on the conversations. So ole Doc Baker places the call, and Mrs. Olsen listens in and spreads some juicy gossip.
We have the same issue with virtual visits. I should take a step back to clarify that telemedicine visits give us the image of a video link between Doctor and patient. That is a virtual visit. Many appointments are still simple phone calls. Some patients do not have the technology to do a virtual meeting or are afraid their video link might be hacked.
There have been a lot of stories of Zoom conference calls being hacked into or outright taken over. The downside of not doing a virtual visit for telemedicine and relying solely on a call is that it makes the diagnosis of patients much harder. The best is in-person visits where you can read body language, do an actual exam and when needed, not only see the affected region of the body but also use physical contact to diagnose the issue.
Virtual is a step down without the physical contact and, at times, not a clear view of the affected area. Virtual visits can also make body language hard to read – is the patient uneasy with the video link causing more stress as an example. Even with limitations, telemedicine is an essential medical tool to treat patients.
Telemedicine is vital for veterinarians as well. If you are a wildlife vet trying to treat a moose in Canada or elephant in Kenya, telemedicine can connect you to specific expertise you need to help diagnose a suffering animal.
The state of Connecticut added vets to their list of essential workers during the pandemic. In Governor Lamont’s Covid19 Executive order telemedicine is highlighted for its importance to the care of pets.
Technology to treat people, wildlife, or pets will continue to advance and improve outcomes. Telemedicine allows us to tap into experts around the world and to reach into the most remote areas of the world to ensure better medical results.
