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Telemedicine benefits during covid-19 pandemic. But is it here to stay?
The coronavirus pandemic has forced healthcare to go online. In many countries, online teleconsultations are currently the only way to give and receive medical advice. Instead of face-to-face appointments, we can only see a doctor through a computer screen. How will this affect the development of new healthcare technologies? Will teleconsultations become more popular, or will they be regarded as a substitute that we resort to only in times of crisis? 92
OSOZ World 2020
A compulsory lesson in digitization So far, telemedicine has been developing very slowly. Even though adequate technological solutions have been available for a long time, there are other obstacles in the way: • reimbursement models favoring personal doctor’s appointments; • issues related to personal and medical data security; • the fear that contact between the doctor and the patient will be dehumanized; • the fact that teleconsultations may be regarded as a poor substitute for a doctor’s appointment. Despite its promising advantages, telemedicine has not gained mass popularity, as had been hoped by the enthusiasts of digital health solutions. That was true, at least, until the beginning of 2020. Due to the rapidly growing
number of coronavirus-infected patients, initially in China and then all over the world, doctors and patients were forced to face a new reality almost overnight. The pandemic has turned the established order on its head, reshuffled values, and radically shifted our point of view. When protecting your own health and the health of your loved ones requires isolation, you have no other option than to switch to digital services. But it does not apply solely to healthcare. It includes canceled concerts, soccer matches that can only be watched online, and museums are offering virtual tours. Instead of going to a restaurant, you have to have food delivered to your doorstep. A walk around the town has been replaced by surfing the Internet and exercising on a yoga mat. Home-office has become the only office. Hardly anyone has the impression that they do these things because they
