Telemedicine Pays Off for Rural Hospitals
The integration of digital healthcare continues to accelerate within our modern world given its convenience and efficiency while still maintaining care quality. But what does telemedicine deliver for your financial bottom line and how can it demonstrate long term benefits?
Virtual Care vs. Traditional Care
A study published in the Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare revealed the total cost for the most common virtual diagnoses was sharply lower than in “other” care settings. According to the study, between April 2016 and March 2017, the total cost for the most common telehealth diagnoses was $429. That expense was significantly lower than traditional care options:
$232 less than urgent care
$278 less than primary care
$2,974 less than diagnoses delivered in the emergency department
For rural hospitals, budgets are often restrictive, making it more difficult to access critical resources and providers to deliver care. By integrating telehealth services across all areas of care, healthcare facilities can greatly reduce expenses.
How Is Telemedicine Benefiting Patients and Providers?
While telehealth isn’t new to rural areas, there are several factors stimulating its growth. Over the course of my career, I’ve seen how changing demographics and a nationwide shortage of providers are driving the need for innovative healthcare solutions.
Luckily, advancing telehealth technology continues to deliver new possibilities. Providers can integrate digital healthcare into their current operations across multiple disciplines to enhance their practice and provide higher quality care:
Improves access to care.
Increases patient convenience.
Increases resources available to local providers so they can care for more patients locally.
Provides methods for local providers to engage their patients virtually.
Creates a higher degree of local provider satisfaction.
More patients cared for locally produces a positive return on investment.
Having strategized and integrated telemedicine programs with rural healthcare management, I’ve seen firsthand how instrumental telehealth is for improving hospitals’ bottom line. Our industry is in a constant state of transition, as it should be, because we are continuously defining the future of healthcare. We certainly haven’t reached the tipping point of telemedicine. It’s just beginning, and it will continue to expand and shape the operations of tomorrow.
