How to Profit from the Growing Telehealth Industry as a Health Professional
Telemedicine is here to stay, and forward-thinking health professionals had better prepare to take advantage of it.
The telemedicine adoption rate has surged recently due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Mckinsey reports that consumer adoption of virtual medical services grew from 11% in 2019 to 44% in 2020. That’s quite the jump.
But the spike shouldn’t be mistaken for a fad that will fade once the pandemic subsides. Experts expect telemedicine to rack up global revenue of $175.5 million by 2026 compared to $45.5 million in 2019.
What does this mean for physicians, therapists, and health coaches like you? Healthcare delivery is moving online, and you need relevant skills to adapt to and profit from the shift.
One of these skills is learning how to build trust with patients online. This is no mean task since the dynamics of virtual interactions differ from in-person meetings.
But as professionals, we still need to learn how to draw patients out of their shells so we can do our jobs.
Here are a few tips on how to do that.
How to Build Trust in a Virtual Setting
Demonstrate Competence
Sure the patient knows your credentials. But you must ensure that everything about you oozes competence. From your appearance to your backdrop and lighting, you need to maintain a professional outlook.
Beyond what you wear and the room’s ambiance, your on-screen attitude is also critical. It’s easier for people to misread cues when they aren’t in the same room as you. As such, you want to avoid potentially alarming actions like failing to make eye contact.
Do well to listen more. A great way to reassure your patient that you’re paying attention is to repeat their words. Also, ask questions using their phrases to get a better grasp of their struggles.
Keep Relevant Information Close
Patients will trust you more if they feel like you actually know them. While it’s unrealistic to rattle off every patient’s details off the top of your head, the virtual space offers a decent alternative.
You can keep relevant details on your screen as you chat with the patient. But you need to be careful of how you glance at the information. Looking from the camera for even a split second may send the wrong message to your audience.
A better option would be to share the screen with your patient and discuss the records together.
Show Empathy
You’ll require extra effort to display empathy during virtual interactions with patients. For one, the perceived distance might prevent you from showing gestures that come naturally during face-to-face meetings.
Your best bet is to deliberately reassure the patient with verbal and visual cues that you get their situation. They want to see you nod, hitch up your eyebrows and even lean forward to display increased attention.
And, of course, your verbal responses also matter. Acknowledge your patients’ pains with replies like:
· “Yes, I understand”
· “That can really be difficult to deal with sometimes”
· “I’m sorry this is happening,” etc.
At Bookzdoctor, we offer more in-depth training to our contractors, including statements they should avoid while dealing with clients online.
Be Reliable
Building trust during virtual health visits is primarily about sending the right signals. As such, it really doesn’t matter how reliable you are if the patient cannot sense it.
Important steps to take to constantly prove your reliability include:
· Showing up early to virtual meeting
· Testing your equipment beforehand to prevent avoidable interruptions
· Anticipating problems patients could face and preparing solutions ahead
Patients are usually inclined to trust their doctors. But the barriers of a virtual setting can threaten such trust levels.
There are two solutions to this problem.
One is to use sophisticated technology like our Oculus Quest 2. It offers an enhanced virtual experience for patients. The other option is to train physicians on how to bridge the trust gap created by a virtual setting. We do both at Bookzdoctor.
What is Bookzdoctor, and why should you be a Part of It?
Telehealth is fast gaining traction amongst health professionals and patients alike. As such, physicians who shun it or are ill-prepared to leverage it risk being left behind.
But this will not happen on our watch at Bookzdoctor. We are an AI-powered telemedicine platform designed to help physicians, therapists, and coaches offer Telehealth services with ease. The goal is to connect you with patients online, help you stay relevant, and profit from your skill.
But that’s not all.
We are also building a close-knit community of health practitioners that will support one another. No one understands your pains and struggles like your colleagues.
And you don’t have to deal with professional and personal issues alone.
So we are bringing medical minds together to brainstorm ideas on how to make their lives and jobs easier.
It’s a safe space for physicians.
What’s in it for you?
· Connect with patients and make extra money from your profession
· Join and grow alongside more than 12,000 other medical professionals
· Link up with healthcare leaders and benefit from their experience
· Stay abreast of the latest research funding, ACGME accredited residency, and job opportunities tailored for you.
· Get expert tips for the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) and the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USLME).
Join our tribe of health practitioners to grow as a professional and adapt to the changing health landscape. Get in touch today.
https://www.bookzdoctor.com/telemedicine
