The COVID-19 pandemic created a dilemma in the world of healthcare. Approximately 100 million people were infected with the virus, triggering an unprecedented explosion in healthcare needs.
However, the highly contagious nature of the virus discouraged many victims from leaving their homes to seek treatment. To address this dilemma, healthcare providers turned to telehealth, a technology solution that doctors had used for decades but only in limited applications.
“Prior to Covid, telehealth was seen primarily as an emerging frontier in the healthcare space used mostly to serve those in remote regions,” explains Josh Thompson, CEO of Impact Health USA and Impact Health University. “It had promise, but it was plagued by problems caused by a lack of connectivity and software limitations. Administrative issues such as regulatory uncertainties and insurance complexities also led to telehealth being underutilized.”
Impact Health USA is a ground-breaking national telehealth platform offering primary care, obesity medications, and mental health support. It leverages expertise in business, technology, and entrepreneurship to empower better healthcare access and provide opportunities for entrepreneurs to own their own healthcare clinics. Through Impact Health University, Thompson advises clinic owners on launching and running successful healthcare businesses.
“When Covid hit, it created a situation that inspired mainstream adoption of telehealth,” Thompson says. “The full potential of telehealth was realized during the pandemic, accelerating a revolution in healthcare accessibility and delivery.”
The early challenges to effective telehealth
Technological hurdles played a central role in the early resistance to telehealth. In the early days of digitalization, few providers had the infrastructure in place to support telehealth, and even fewer patients had access to the hardware or software that could facilitate a reliable connection.
Additionally, providers had little guidance from regulators as to how telehealth should be properly approached.
“Without comprehensive guidelines, providers worried offering telehealth could expose them to compliance risks,” Thompson explains. “It was also unclear to what degree insurance companies would embrace telehealth, leaving patients and providers with concerns over how it could increase healthcare costs.”
A lack of appreciation for the benefits of telehealth also contributed to a lack of early acceptance. Prior to the pandemic, most doctors and patients had only experienced face-to-face appointments. Taking a risk on an unknown approach was considered unnecessary as long as in-office appointments were possible.
The revolutionary impact of Covid on telehealth
As Covid swept across the US, patients became wary of in-office visits. Statistics gathered by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) during the early phases of the pandemic showed that 57 percent of patients skipped in-office care because they were afraid of being exposed to the virus.
Yet patient fear wasn’t the only problem. JAMA also found that 63 percent of patients lost healthcare access during the pandemic because their medical practice was closed temporarily or permanently.
“When Covid hit, both patients and healthcare providers were in desperate need of a safe and convenient way to continue medical consultations,” says Thompson. “At the same time, technological advances emerged that empowered easy and reliable remote access. In that environment, telehealth experienced rapid adoption.”
The pandemic propelled telehealth to the forefront of the healthcare world, giving providers the tools they needed to overcome the obstacles Covid has introduced. As its value became clear, all of the key players aligned behind it.
“Key agencies around the world quickly took steps to facilitate the growth of telehealth by implementing new policies and relaxing regulations,” Thompson shares. “Insurance companies also helped by expanding coverage to include telehealth. Everyone involved in the equation, from patients to governments to the companies developing the technology, embraced the changes needed to make effective telehealth a reality.”
Telehealth in the post-Covid world
As Covid retreated and healthcare facilities opened again, the unexpected happened: telehealth became a key component of the new normal.
“Telehealth matured during Covid,” Thompson explains. “It transcended its position as a supplementary service and entered the mainstream. Rather than receding into the background, telehealth emerged in the wake of Covid as a standard component of the global healthcare delivery system.”
As telehealth became more accepted by patients and providers alike, new use cases were discovered. Rather than just providing primary care access, telehealth is now used to provide access to medical specialists in fields such as dermatology and chronic disease management. It has also become a powerful tool in the mental health field to increase the accessibility and privacy of mental health services.
“Telehealth is shaping a new era in healthcare,” Thompson says. “It’s an innovation that makes care more accessible, more efficient, and more adaptable to a patient’s unique needs. Every step the healthcare community takes toward supporting telehealth is a proactive move toward a more resilient, reliable, and impactful healthcare system.”
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