For decades, healthcare has looked fundamentally the same. When patients need care, they visit healthcare providers (HCPs) in a physician's office, hospital, or ambulatory outpatient clinic. During these face-to-face interactions, HCPs can gather information by listening to what the patient says and what is left unsaid; by visually examining the patient's body and body language; and, by laying hands on the patient, often one of the most important ways to initiate the healing process.

The COVID-19 pandemic upended that model – driving a perception among patients that healthcare facilities had become one of the riskiest places to visit. At the height of stay-at-home orders, face-to-face office visits dropped significantly. In their place was a sharp increase in the use of telemedicine – that is, the delivery of clinical services via telehealth technology and communications infrastructure.

Read full article now - From Today to Telemedicine: 3 Gaps and Risks