Online Doctor Visit
Should you consider an online doctor visit, and what does an online doctor visit entail? Since the COVID-19 pandemic, online doctor visits have become as popular as ever. This is due to people being prohibited from traveling during the pandemic, except for urgent or emergency circumstances.
Doctors opened up their practices to hosting online or virtual consultations during the pandemic. This includes the notion of a regular doctor’s visit but is hosted on a smart device of sorts. There were various reasons for moving regular doctor consultations online, the primary one being to reduce the risk of infection and the spread of COVID-19. Many patients set out to seek medical advice online for minor illnesses which did not require urgent or immediate medical care at a physical doctor’s office.
Most doctors not only opened up consultations for the diagnosis and treatment of everyday illnesses, but they also assisted in the diagnosis of COVID-19 through an online covid consultation.
An online covid consultation included vetting out a patient’s symptoms before sending them off for a COVID-19 test. This was important for doctors to do online, as it prevented those who were diagnosed with COVID-19 from entering a doctor’s office and spreading the disease even further.
During an online covid consultation, a doctor initiates the following:
- An assessment of a patient’s current symptoms is obtained
- A brief medical history of the patients is obtained
- Travel history of the patient is obtained
- Contact history is obtained, including where the patient has been, as well as who they have been in contact with
If a doctor feels that a patient has, in fact, got signs and symptoms of COVID-19, they will then send the patient off for a COVID-19 test to confirm whether they have it or not.
The lab results from the COVID-19 test will then be sent to the doctors office, where the doctor will review the results and administer treatment via an online covid consultation.
Online covid consultations benefited many during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, as it reduced the number of in-person doctor consultations and individuals having to wait in the doctor’s office for their appointments. This, in turn, assisted in slowing down the infection rate of COVID-19 in the long run.
Although an online covid consultation was beneficial for many people across the globe, many individuals needed more serious and urgent medical care. Unfortunately, not everyone had access to medical care during the crux of the COVID-19 pandemic, whether it was online or in person. As a result, many people were left untreated by a medical professional, as they had no other option.
An online covid consultation was beneficial to many individuals across the globe; however, during the peak of the pandemic, doctors did not have the time, resources, or ability to take on even more medical cases other than those with which they were already dealing with. Many patients were left medically untreated and had to treat themselves or ill loved ones at home without any medical care.
Since the crux of the COVID-19 pandemic, online doctor visits have remained a regular practice for many medical practitioners. Online doctor visits have become more and more popular in the medical world, and not just for the treatment of COVID-19.
Online doctor visits have become increasingly popular for treating minor and less severe illnesses. A doctor’s visit is not always necessary for the following:
- Common colds and flu: it is beneficial to treat this via an online doctor’s appointment as it does not expose other patients to further possible infections.
- Pink eye: this highly contagious infection can be treated by a doctor remotely.
- Hair Loss: this is not necessarily an illness that needs urgent medical treatment, but medical advice can be given remotely
- Urinary Tract Infections: mild urinary tract infections can be treated remotely
- Vomiting: vomiting can generally be treated remotely if there are no other accompanying symptoms
- Diarrhea: diarrhea can be treated remotely, granted that there are no other accompanying symptoms
- Allergies: can be treated remotely, without an in-person consultation, as long as this does not include severe allergic reactions, where urgent medical care is required.
Online doctor visits have become more popular than ever. The pandemic has forever changed certain aspects of our global healthcare system by forcing us to find online alternatives. Although an online doctor visit has many benefits, it does not mean that in-person doctor consultations have been replaced. It is still crucial to visit your regular doctor for a face-to-face consultation if you require urgent medical care.
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