Telehealth — sometimes called telemedicine — lets your doctor provide care for you without an in-person office visit. Telehealth is done primarily online with internet access on your computer, tablet, or smartphone.
There are several options for telehealth care:
- Talk to your doctor live over the phone or video chat.
- Send and receive messages from your doctor using secure messaging, email, and secure file exchange.
- Use remote monitoring so your doctor can check on you at home.
Benefits of telehealth
Virtual visits are growing in popularity. Though in-person office visits may be necessary in certain cases, there are many benefits of telehealth care.
- Limited physical contact reduces everyone’s exposure to COVID-19.
- Virtual visits ensure you get health care wherever you are located – at home, at work or even in your car.
- Virtual visits cut down on travel, time off from work, and the need for child care.
- Virtual health care tools can shorten the wait for an appointment.
- Virtual visits give you increased access to specialists who are located far away from your hometown.
Source: telehealth.hhs.gov