We are combining our Telemedicine and Virtual Care reports into Telemedicine News and Updates. We are seeking out the latest developments around Telemedicine. How is telemedicine used to benefit patients and care givers? What are the newest innovations in telemedicine technology? How telehealth and virtual care fit into the realm of Telemedicine.
Industry News:
Grand Rounds and Doctor On Demand to Merge, Creating First of its Kind Patient-Centric Integrated Virtual Healthcare Company
Grand Rounds (@GrandRoundsInc), a provider of healthcare quality and navigation, and Doctor On Demand (@drondemand), a national virtual care provider, announced their merger agreement. The new integrated virtual care company will be the first of its kind. These two premier platforms will offer a patient and provider experience unmatched elsewhere, providing a full suite of digital and interactive solutions to help people address the $300 billion problem of uncoordinated care in the U.S.
Amazon Care to launch across U.S. this summer, offering millions of individuals and families immediate access to high-quality medical care and advice—24 hours a day, 365 days a year
Amazon (@amazonnews) is announcing that Amazon Care is available to serve other Washington-based companies. Additionally, beginning this summer, Amazon Care will expand its virtual care to companies and Amazon employees in all 50 states across the U.S. Finally, Amazon Care’s in-person service will expand to Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and other cities in the coming months.
Spectrum Health Partners with TytoCare to Expand Telehealth Offerings
Spectrum Health (@spectrumhealth), a not-for-profit, integrated health system based in West Michigan, announced a new partnership with TytoCare (@TytoCare), the global health care industry’s first all-in-one modular device and examination platform for AI-powered, on-demand, remote medical exams. The integration of TytoCare into Spectrum Health’s current virtual care offerings enhances the health system’s ability to diagnose and treat patients remotely with in-depth, physical examinations during video visits.
Amwell Joins Leading Health Care Innovators to Advance Care in the Home
Amwell®, (@amwell) a national telehealth company, announced it will become a founding member of Moving Health Home (MHH), a coalition working to advance care delivery by making the home a clinical site of care. Amwell will work with a diverse group of industry leaders from across the health care ecosystem to shape the future of care, working to unite key industry stakeholders to make the home a sustainable site for care delivery.
SOC Telemed to Announce Fourth Quarter 2020 Financial Results and Host Conference Call
SOC Telemed (@SOCTelemed), a provider of acute care telemedicine, announced that the company will release results for its fourth quarter ended December 31, 2020 on Tuesday, March 30, 2020 after the market closes.
Reliq Health Technologies, Inc. Announces New Contract with a Physician Practice in Florida to Provide iUGO Care to over 25 Skilled Nursing Facilities
Reliq Health Technologies Inc. (@ReliqHealth), a rapidly growing global telemedicine company that develops innovative Virtual Care solutions for the multi-billion dollar Healthcare market, announced that it has signed a new contract with a physician practice in Florida that provides clinical services to over 25 Skilled Nursing Facilities across the State.
Evidation Raises $153M to Scale Virtual Health Capabilities of Achievement™ Platform
Evidation Health announced the close of $153 million in Series E growth funding to rapidly expand its virtual health programs on AchievementTM, the largest digital health network in the United States. Evidation will use this additional capital to fuel the expansion of virtual health programs on the Achievement platform, building on its trusted relationships with individuals and its experience synthesizing and analyzing person-generated health data for stakeholders across healthcare.
Latest News from the FCC:
Rosenworcel Circulates Round 2 COVID-19 Telehealth Program R&O
Acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel (@fcc) circulated a Report and Order and Order on Reconsideration that, if adopted, would establish Round 2 of the COVID-19 Telehealth Program, a $249.95 million dollar federal initiative that builds on the $200 million program established as part of the CARES Act.
Product News:
Rhinogram Announces Addition of e-Forms & Signatures to its Virtual Care Platform
Rhinogram (@rhinogram), a cloud-based, HIPAA-compliant virtual care platform, announced the integration of e-forms and signatures into its comprehensive platform. The new feature enables providers using the Rhinogram platform to support a fully virtual or hybrid experience, while streamlining patient intake and reducing the use of paper and storage space.
THREAD Launches New Telehealth Features Expanding Video and Audio Capture for Complex eCOA during Virtual Visits in Decentralized Clinical Trials
THREAD (@THREADresearch), a technology and service provider enabling decentralized clinical trials (DCTs), announced the launch of new telehealth features. Building on four years of conducting electronic clinical outcome assessments (eCOA) during telehealth virtual visits, the new features raise the bar in DCT telehealth functionality by adding several unique enhancements to the company’s industry-leading eCOA and telehealth virtual visit solution. New features allow clinical study stakeholders – including sponsors, caregivers, home health professionals and raters – to remotely and safely capture video and/or audio recordings in real time. This solution supports multiple attendees during a virtual visit and provides a globally compliant solution for participants and sites.
Strong Patient Engagement and Outcomes Achieved Virtually through Remote Patient Monitoring
Carium (@cariumcares), a telehealth technology company, announces the success of Health Logx’s virtual care program. Health Logx partners with primary care practices to provide virtual health and wellness services for at-risk patients, focusing on the CMS programs of remote patient monitoring (RPM) and chronic care management (CCM) to virtually support patients in between office visits.
Bright.md Launches Overhauled Product Suite to Accelerate Care and Deliver Better Patient Experience
Bright.md (@BrightMD_Health), a digital health company transforming the patient-provider experience, announced a comprehensive update to its award-winning asynchronous virtual care platform. The company’s renamed platform “Bright.md,” formerly SmartExam™, includes expanded functionality, clinical content, and offerings to integrate its signature pre-visit interviews and asynchronous treatment with navigation to guide patients to optimal care based on their symptoms and preferences.
Lumeon Connects Up Virtual Care with Patient Self-Scheduling
Lumeon (@lumeon_), a digital health company, announced the launch of its latest solution, Patient Self-Scheduling. This launch adds to an already comprehensive armory of capabilities, enabling providers to quickly design and launch continuous, self-service care experiences with a single enterprise platform.
To Read:
The pandemic ushered in ‘a new era of medicine’: These telehealth trends are likely here to stay by USA Today – Athenahealth, a health tech company, released an interactive dashboard that delivered insights on telehealth trends from 18.4 million virtual appointments by 60,000 providers. Here are some telemedicine trends the company and other health experts have found.
Exploring the Growth of Telehealth and What it Means for the Industry by Frank Landman – The COVID pandemic has turned a simmering trend into a roaring boil. Telehealth, which was once a small segment of a billion-dollar industry, has become commonplace and sometimes even preferred.
Reports and Studies:
Updox Report: 75% of Providers Say A Virtual Care Strategy is Essential as Healthcare Moves Forward
Updox (@updox), a complete healthcare communication platform for in-person and virtual care, released a new report, Maximizing Virtual Care in 2021: How Healthcare Providers Can Easily Innovate and Advance Their Practices in a Consumer-Driven Environment. The report includes data from a survey of more than 1,000 healthcare providers across a variety of specialty practice areas and details how virtual care impacted providers and their respective practices during the COVID-19 pandemic, providers’ plans for developing a full virtual care strategy in 2021 and beyond, and barriers to adoption that still exist in relation to digital health technology.
Listen:
HealthcareNOW Radio Telehealth Playlist
The Health Resources and Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services defines telehealth as “the use of electronic information and telecommunications technologies to support and promote long-distance clinical health care, patient and professional health-related education, public health and health administration.” To learn more and find out about the latest in telehealth tune in to the episodes on this playlist. Additionally, be sure to read HCNR’s Friday Five which recaps the site’s month long concentration on telehealth.
Telehealth.HHS.gov
During the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, we don’t have to choose between medical care and social distancing. When patients can get health care through telehealth — and doctors can provide it — we protect ourselves and our communities. The Telehealth.HHS.gov website provides information about the latest federal efforts to support and promote telehealth services.
The American Telemedicine Association Events
ATA is a non-profit association based in Washington DC with a membership network of more than 10,000 industry leaders and healthcare professionals. We are a leading telehealth association helping to transform healthcare by improving the quality, equity and affordability of healthcare throughout the world. Find their next event.
Defining the Industry According to the AAFP:
Telemedicine is the practice of medicine using technology to deliver care at a distance. It occurs using a telecommunications infrastructure between a patient (at an originating or spoke site) and a physician or other practitioner licensed to practice medicine (at a distant or hub site).
Virtual Care is a patient service model for healthcare providers.
Telehealth refers to a broad collection of electronic and telecommunications technologies that support health care delivery and services from distant locations. Telehealth technologies support virtual medical, health, and education services.
Hashtags to follow for updates on Telemedicine: