a One major trend, that I see many others have talked about, is the rise
of telehealth! It is something I have talked to many of my friends and
colleagues about. There have been many pros and cons and of course
many implications affecting financial planning. One thing, unrelated
to financial planning that I often worry about is quality of assessment.
For a short burst during the pandemic there was the inability to get in-
person appointments unless urgent. For physical symptoms and
concerns there was a lack of ability to do physical assessments, where
many healthcare professionals had to get creative. It was rather
interesting to see the ways they were able to get needed assessments
done! I am interested if any of you had experience with the same? a
Anyway, on to the important topic at hand!
a a a a To begin with, telehealth has been estimated to save on
average of 120 dollars per virtual visit compared to an in person visit
(Snoswell et al., 2020). This includes time in the office, supplies used,
and so on. However, it also saves the patient money. Take for
example the money saved on traveling to an office, and possibility of
not needing to take time off of work to attend doctor visits. During
COVID it also may have saved quite a few people from being exposed
to diseases unnecessarily by not having to share small spaces in
doctor’s offices! Which may have saved many follow up or hospital
visits. Short appointments, such as appointments needed to help refill
prescriptions and address symptoms since last visit become more
efficient financially and physically for both professionals and patients.
Allowing more time with other patients.
One benefit seen is persons may be more willing to see or meet with
healthcare professionals through tele-health visits. There are people
who may be anxious going to an in-person doctor’s office. By offering
healthcare to come to them, and having the ability for them to meet
in what they deem a ‘comfortable space’ many may become less
anxious and more willing to go to doctor’s appointments. This helped
create a greater draw of patients to healthcare clinics. Financially it
may help create more jobs to meet the need, but also a greater profit
for clinics.
a a a a Next, telehealth needs to have up to date technology to offer
the proper care to its patients. Healthcare offices must have strong
internet connection and available up to date electronics to connect
with its patients. The cost of updating technology and the services
needed to run it can cost anywhere up to 15,000-150,000 dollars for
companies, depending on size, population served and so on
(Horiachko, 2022). This cost, although steep, may help clinics or
healthcare agencies save money in the long run if they deem the
service needed.
a a a a One final implication that telehealth has on financial planning
is the security of the information. Aside from just up to date internet
and technology, healthcare companies must have a plan and
adequate coverage for the potential of hackers stealing confidential
information. It was found on average that in 2020 data breach’s cost
healthcare companies $7.13 million (Landi, 2020). Most of the
information stolen was personal identifiable information, which was
also the most costly for businesses (Landi, 2020). It is possible to buy
systems which help work to protect these threats, and they were able
to find a savings difference of nearly three million dollars for
companies that had it in place (Landi, 2020).
a a Overall, I believe there is a bright and needed future for
telehealth, and the pros and cons regarding its financial planning
weight must be measured. For many clinics telehealth has created
positive opportunities and allowed for growth and savings. Hopefully
it continues to grow.
a References a a a
Horiachko, A. (2022, April 11). Cost of telemedicine app: Is it a worthy
investment? Softermii. https://www.softermii.com/blog/cost-of-
telemedicine
Landi, H. (2020, July 29). Average cost of healthcare data breach rises
to $7.1m, according to IBM report. Fierce Healthcare.
https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/tech/average-cost-healthcare-
data-breach-rises-to-7-1m-according-to-ibm-report
Snoswell C, Taylor M, Comans T, Smith A, Gray L, Caffery L.. (2020).
Determining if Telehealth Can a Reduce Health System Costs:
Scoping Review. J Med Internet Res; 22(10):e17298 a a
https://www.jmir.org/2020/10/e17298 a DOI: 10.2196/17298
