Why You Should Consider Teleconsulting Before Visiting a Hospital During This Crisis Online medical platforms are devoted to closing the loop: from consultation to prescription, sample collection and medicine delivery.
By Rajat Garg •
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.
The Corona crisis is a challenge as well as an opportunity for the healthcare industry. More and more people are now turning to online doctor consultations and medicine delivery for proper healthcare.
One of the reasons for this is of course the higher risk of contracting COVID-19 in hospitals and clinics, which see a lot of patient footfalls. Additionally, lockdown and quarantines have restricted movement in many places.
Online healthcare platforms that provide teleconsultation services are in a unique position now to offer timely medical advice and other health services.
Consulting a doctor during the Corona epidemic has become difficult for people, whether they live in a rural or an urban area. Rural areas have fewer doctors available while people residing in a city don't want to step out to visit a hospital because of social distancing. In these times, online consultation is a blessing for them, as it has all the advantages of a face-to-face interaction.
Reducing Risks
Any person going for normal consultation to a hospital during this time would be at a higher risk to catch the COVID-19 virus as this virus is highly contagious. Going to a hospital or clinic at this time would put both the patient and the doctor at higher risk of infection. Thus by taking online consultation, the patients can avoid catching the coronavirus and get their consultation/orders fulfilled through teleconsultation.
During this crisis, a lot of private clinics are not functioning. In such scenarios, people rely on big hospitals for consultation services. This can put the patient in a dual risk situation. Firstly, travelling far in a lockdown situation is already a challenge in itself, given all the instructions and strictness from the government. Secondly, there's a high risk of catching the infection as hospitals are regularly being visited by infected people. So, it is better to avoid visiting a hospital in such times for safety reasons.
Closing the Loop
Online healthcare platforms are also offering consultations with specialists. To give just one example, we are hearing about a lot of problems that pregnant women are facing at this time, as they are not able to visit their gynaecologist as regularly as they normally would. At many of these platforms, highly experienced gynaecologists are able to address many of their problems and queries, by talking to them and by seeing them on video.
They're also prescribing medicines and lab tests if necessary. Patients can get these medicines home delivered from the platform after placing an order online. Also, they can book a lab test and get their sample pickup done. Online medical platforms are devoted to closing the loop: from consultation to prescription, sample collection and medicine delivery.
