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Dr. Frydman discovered that another benefit of telehealth is learning more about their patients’ home environments. An elderly telehealth patient proudly told him about taking care of the greenery he noticed behind him. Then, within a few months, he saw his houseplants wilt and die. “It prompted me to ask about his mood, his energy,” she said, and their answers revealed an unforeseen problem.
At his palliative care practice at Mount Sinai, Dr. Frydman discovered, of course, that telehealth has its limits. “Sometimes you want to see patients enter the room,” he said. “Has their gait changed? How do they get in and out of a chair?”
This is what bothered 83-year-old Marcia Weiser about telehealth. “It’s better than nothing, but I don’t see it as optimal,” said Ms. Weiser, a retired math teacher on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. Most health problems like joint pain and cholesterol monitoring require “something hands-on, a blood test, urine test, or eye test.” “I can’t get this on a computer.”
Telehealth may not be for everyone, but research has shown that both patients and doctors widely supported. After 2023, when the current Medicare extension ends, “the fundamental question for policymakers will be not whether telehealth will be allowed but how to make it efficient, effective and fair and available to all,” Dr. Jacobson
Researchers are still investigating whether patients who use virtual services fare as well as in-person care. review of clinical trials Substantially similar results were found using video teleconferencing.
Analysts are also watching whether video and phone visits replace face-to-face appointments or additionally increase Medicare spending unnecessarily. It is also unclear whether telehealth is more fraud-prone than in-person care.
Promoting equity in telehealth is another challenge, as access to digital devices and the Internet differs significantly between different groups.
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