Why Virtual Care Must Prevail
The Slow Demise of Virtual Care in Ontario
Ongoing Relationships With a Family Doctor
The Convenience of Virtual Care
- Aside from the task itself (of seeing-the-doctor), there’s a much bigger total opportunity cost of going to a doctor with something relatively minor – even if it’s just a 30-minute drive each way, there’s prep time, wait time at the clinic, wait time in the room, often maybe 2h on the low end but in more cases, it’s a half-day commitment.
- That’s 2-6h of productivity removed from each system at play (personal, family-unit, healthcare, economy at large).
- There’s unneeded CO2 being released into the atmosphere from the drive itself.
- Health outcomes might actually suffer in some cases (I regularly have 30% higher blood pressure after driving into my GP’s office due to both white coat hypertension and perpetually crazy traffic in the GTA) and there’s always a possibility of contagion at a doctor’s office.
- We might remove someone else with more serious symptoms from the queue since queueing at a GP’s office usually follows a first-come, first-serve model, not ER triage rules.
- Finally, if the more likely scenario occurs and it’s not possible to get a prompt appointment at a GP’s office, most Canadians default to … going to the ER, where these total costs get tremendously magnified.
Virtual Care and Accessibility
- Parents in need of pediatric care outside of business hours
- The elderly, often with mobility issues or lack of access to transport
- Indigenous people
- People living in rural areas
- People living in poverty
- People with mental illnesses or addictions
- Other disadvantaged groups
Virtual Care - Comprehensive Care and Continuity of Care
Conclusion
To learn more about health practitioners in your area or to ask about providers who address specific treatment needs, contact us today.
About the author
Thomas Jankowski
Thomas is a digital native and serial entrepreneur with firsthand experience in fintech, healthtech, travel, media and technology verticals. As one of the first Chief Digital Officers in Canada, his mandate has always been extremely polymathic and his operational oversight often includes come combination of sales, marketing, technology, product, r&d, strategy and innovation. He has been responsible for major growth at Fortune 500 enterprises including NCR or Postmedia and Growth 500 companies, such as FlightNetwork and Coinsquare and counts multiple exits under his belt. Thomas shares his time between advisory, board, and growth roles in the startup ecosystem. His current interests include blockchain, IoT, machine learning and automation.
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Thomas Jankowskihttps://medimap.ca/author/thomas-jankowski/