Health delivery methodology is changing with the rise of innovation and technology. First of all, care is becoming more diversified as monitoring, treatment, and prevention are divided into multiple processes with a specific sequence of interventions. Besides, a customer-centric approach is a fundamental assistance model to meet the needs of a diversified audience. Telemedicine and virtual visits are essential for patient comfort and can be implemented more efficiently than traditional hospital procedures. Customer security is achieved through the protection of the platform from fraud and competent health outcomes. On the other hand, the rapid development of technology is an ambiguous vector for the initiation of online medicine due to the increased risk of cyberattacks. Parallel education of users on the basics of secure contact and improvement of existing technologies for providing reliable communication are priorities for the current healthcare system. Thus, virtual care is a promising but challenging project to thoroughly implement due to the need to deliver anti-hacking and similar quality of services.
Health informatics is a fast-growing field of knowledge that is integrating into the health care delivery system. It is essential to understand that the current client needs to focus on improving long-term care, addressing cultural and community diversity, and providing a holistic care model. The transformation of the healthcare sector towards the digitalization of information allows one to accelerate everyday processes and introduce more complicated operations, including centralized storage and data reproduction. Telemedicine and virtual visits are a promising vector of technology growth, as they contribute to the enhancement of comfort and mobility in receiving consultations and treatment. However, the challenge of thoroughly integrating innovation into the medical field covers the cost and flexibility of existing systems, namely, traditional care models. In other words, telemedicine can potentially provide similar hospital services, but it is unlikely with the current evolution of mobile applications. Thus, the need for further research and the use of virtual services is key to the progress of a client-centered approach.
Telemedicine is a broad concept that includes any online interaction between a provider and a client. Virtual visits are more convenient for the doctor and patient since they do not waste time on the road to the hospital and can meet at any location with a camera device and Internet access (Bokolo, 2020). This approach is innovative as monitoring and initial inspection can be performed with minimal resources. Besides, the global pandemic has forced providers to adapt their services to the needs of medical organizations. Social distance and preference for virtual contacts can also be implemented in healthcare using telemedicine. Practical experience shows that online projects can be successful in providing primary care and coordinating patient follow-up (Zweig, 2020). The prospects for the development of virtual visits mean that essential medical interventions can be obtained in a home environment that is more comfortable for the community. Thus, telemedicine has tremendous potential for growth if the technology is successfully integrated into the connection between doctor and patient.
Modern online platforms are variable frameworks, whose virtual architectures allow for implementing multi-factor models of aid delivery. It is essential to understand that technicians today can create online offices and databases that can compete with traditional hospitals and in-house cloud storage. The key stumbling block, in this case, is the specifics of the service provided, namely those manipulations that can be useful even without the client’s presence in the institution. As noted earlier, telecommunications can provide quality primary care and streamline follow-up. For example, a person feels at home and injured their arm, which requires an immediate appointment to the emergency room. Online access to the doctor’s office will help this patient assess the severity of the damage and receive information regarding actions here and now, as well as recommendations for further operations and a visit to the hospital. These approaches can be flexible and cover a wide range of primary care services. Thus, telemedicine and virtual communication at the provider can reduce waiting times, which can sometimes directly affect a patient’s life in critical situations.
The combination of supplier professionalism and the convenience of electronic platforms are promising for the industry, but it reveals the scam’s potential. Online visits can be a target for fraudsters who can obtain the client’s information. An insecure connection can be dangerous for any user, as malicious software can damage your computer and steal data. This topic has been inadequately studied, but existing platforms are secure and do not pose a significant threat to the audience (Greenhalgh et al., 2016). This information provides a prospect for further developing systems, but it is complicated by the ambiguous future of technology in general. On the one hand, telemedicine and related databases’ improvement occurs considering medical protocols and adaptations to possible deception schemes. However, fraudsters and their methodology for interfering with the health care system have grown in parallel. The risk of data loss and theft is increasing exponentially with new options for storing, transferring, and replaying individual patient data. The value of nursing and medical informatics research remains critical to safeguarding audiences from the harmful effects of integrating telemedicine and online visits.
Health outcome is another pressing safety issue due to the development of technology. It is no secret that virtual visits have limited functionality in terms of examinations and treatment since a doctor cannot conduct a thorough diagnosis. Clients also perceive the screen as a psychological barrier, which interferes with the free flow of information and sincerity when describing the issue (Romanick-Schmiedl & Raghu, 2020). This dilemma is a matter of time since telemedicine is still considered unknown to most people. Moral discomfort in virtual communication with a doctor can be overcome through initial hospital examinations where the patient becomes acquainted with the provider personally and builds trust. In other words, the individual gets used to the treatment methodology offered by the doctor and becomes more involved in this process. The patient’s proactive participation in hospital interventions minimizes the risk of rejection when switching to online mode, making it possible to integrate this into a large part of the audience efficiently. Consequently, further virtual meetings will be more informal, in which the client will be more open to dialogue and subsequent treatment.
Psychological discomfort can be associated with distrust of innovative systems and an increased risk of data loss. Analysis of existing online visiting systems has proven to be reliable, but it remains unexplored in the long term. Clients may feel the danger of virtual medicine due to the stereotyped perception of new inventions. In other words, a mental barrier in communicating with a physician can arise not only because of the unusual paradigm of care but also because of the fear of declassifying the details of this dialogue. Connecting unknown people to a call, intercepting files, and installing malicious software without both parties’ awareness may be part of telemedicine’s potential outcomes. While it is part of ensuring the technical security of connections, service providers should also tailor their audience to the promising type of care. Thus, the public will sooner or later accept online visits favorably, but healthcare agents must undertake educational activities and adequately explain the functioning of safety systems to each patient.
Telemedicine and virtual appointments are a new stage in the development of medicine, in which the client-centered model reaches diagnosis and treatment. Online calls and training programs allow one to receive information and report problems regardless of the patient’s location. However, this innovation presents the potential for fraud and harm to health. Online platforms must be protected from unauthorized access to information. Even though the available technologies are enough to stop hacking attempts, it remains unknown due to telecommunications services’ rapid development. Medical informatics’s future depends on the actions of specialized software vendors and installers who must regularly update the product to comply with security protocols. Besides, the improvements should cover the client’s psychological well-being when talking to the supplier. The screen can be perceived as a barrier due to the fear of disclosure and the discomfort of not being physically close to the doctor in the office. Thus, technological growth provides limitless potential for improving the comfort of service transfer, but it must be adapted to the growing needs for personal and information security.
References
Bokolo, A., Jr. (2020). Use of telemedicine and virtual care for remote treatment in response to COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Medical Systems, 44(7), 132.
Greenhalgh, T., Vijayaraghavan, S., Wherton, J., Shaw, S., Byrne, E., Campbell-Richards, D., Bhattacharya, S., Hanson, P., Ramoutar, S., Gutteridge, C., Hodkinson, I., Collard, A., & Morris, J. (2016). Virtual online consultations: Advantages and limitations (VOCAL) study. BMJ Open, 6(1), e009388. Web.
Romanick-Schmiedl, S., & Raghu, G. (2020). Telemedicine — Maintaining quality during times of transition. Nature Reviews Disease Primers, 6(1), 45.
Zweig, S. (2020). Patient-doctor telemedicine: Virtual care in the era of COVID-19 and beyond. Missouri Medicine, 117(3), 175–176.