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What Exactly Is Telemedicine—and How Does It Work?

Everything you need to know about virtual doctor appointments, plus when you really should
see an MD in person.

What new features will the May 2020 update include?

Nearly half of US doctors now report treating patients via telemedicine (also known as telehealth), according to a recent
survey by Merritt Hawkins in collaboration with The Physicians Foundation. Telemedicine isn’t actually a new thing;
doctors have been offering telephone consultations for decades. But the COVID-19 era has brought telemedicine to the
forefront of health care. Until there’s a proven treatment or vaccine for the new coronavirus, getting medical advice,
checking out symptoms, or going for a checkup remotely might be a reality for many of us. Here's what doctors who
practice telehealth want you to know about it.
who has embraced telehealth. “Prior to the COVID-19
What is telemedicine? pandemic, my office had been considering incorporat-
ing virtual Invisalign consultations as part of our list of
Telehealth is simpler than it sounds. Basically, you get a services," she tells Health. "The lockdown/stay-at-
consultation or an appointment with your doctor over the home orders motivated us to officially implement the
phone or via an online video platform like Skype, virtual service using Zoom."
FaceTime, or Zoom. Think of it as a “virtual visit” with
your health care provider.
Most health care providers are pretty flexible when it
Before COVID-19, New York City-based gynecol- comes to digital platforms. “Using FaceTime is a sim-
ogist Rebecca C. Brightman, MD, assistant clinical profes- ple option for those with an iPhone, and Skype works
sor of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive medicine at great as well,” pediatric urologist Jay Levy, MD, who
the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, offered is a medical director at Aeroflow Healthcare,
phone consults to patients. But since the outbreak, she’s tells Health. “Many providers also offer an electronic
offered both consultations and appointments via phone or medical record system, like Doxy.me, where patients
webcam. “I offer both to my patients—it’s up to them can check in online and connect with their doctor.”
whether they want the face-to-face interaction,” she
tells Health. Various health care platforms are available to connect
patients remotely with the right medical providers, such
Orthodontist Heather Kunen, DDS, co-founder of dental as Walgreens Find Care, which also offers a virtual
practice Beam Street, in New York City, is another doctor
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