Since 2020, more patients have been seen via telemedicine than ever before. According to Harvard Business Review, 69% of patients were seen via telemedicine in April 2020. While these numbers have tapered off now that doctors see more patients in person again, telemedicine has become a mainstay in the healthcare industry as a result of this surge. Consequently, doctors must learn how to best conduct a telemedicine call to keep patients happy. Here are some telemedicine and doctor-patient relationship tech best practices that every doctor should know!
Maintain Eye Contact by Minimizing Clicks
Whether it’s an in-person or telemedicine visit, eye contact is important to make patients feel like they matter. It shows patients that doctors are paying attention to their concerns and care about what they are saying. While it seems more natural to make eye contact when the patient is in the room, a tendency to overlook this prevails when the patient’s on a computer screen instead. Doctors become distracted by other open windows or click around their screen to find information they’re seeking, and because of this, they lose eye contact with the patient. One way to prevent this is to minimize clicks during a telemedicine session whenever possible in order to maintain focus.
Make Connecting Easy for the Patient
Many practices require patients to have patient portals or download apps in order to have a telemedicine visit, and these often are often perceived as burdens to the patient. According to a recent study, for instance, only about 15-30% of patients use patient portals, indicating there are better options out there in their eyes. The more steps to connect to a telemedicine visit, the more frustrated they will become with the process, especially if they’re an older demographic less familiar with computers. This inevitably affects the doctor-patient relationship in the long run. Instead, find an option for patients to connect that only requires one click rather than additional apps or sign-ins. This will increase the likelihood of them returning to your practice.
Don’t Forget About Reminders
Just because patients aren’t filling a waiting room doesn’t make them any less important, so never treat them as such. A few days before the scheduled visit, make sure to send patients text and/or email reminders for their telemedicine appointment to make sure that the scheduled time is still convenient for them. Better yet, include the link to connect to the visit in this reminder to seem extra helpful to the patient. Not only does this improve a patient’s perception of the practice, but it helps doctors too by ensuring they’re not wasting their time waiting for someone who forgot about the visit. Their time is valuable, and so is yours!
DocResponse Improves the Telemedicine and Doctor-Patient Relationship
DocResponse’s telemedicine software is the perfect example of a solution that keeps both patients and doctors happy. Created for providers, by providers, this software is designed to:
- Minimize clicks for the doctor to improve eye contact
- Allow patients to connect to the telemedicine visit through a single click
- Automatically send appointment reminders to patients before the visit
Interested in learning more about how DocResponse improves the doctor-patient relationship? Schedule a quick demo with our sales team today!