MEDTECH
Before broadband was mainstream , before smartphones and tablets were everywhere , and long before COVID-19 seized the globe , Dr . Javeed Siddiqui saw the future .
In 2002 , he was doing video consultations , reviewing lab data and discussing medications with HIV patients in rural California . But the virtual visits of 20 years ago didn ’ t look like they do today . He was using ISDN — six phone lines spliced together — and bulky cart systems that weighed more than 100 pounds . Eight to 10 frames per second . Poor connections . But at UC Davis — as a disciple of Dr . Thomas Nesbitt , the father of telehealth in California — Siddiqui believed in the potential of doctors seeing patients online , despite the doubters .
“ Many of my colleagues thought this was one step away from medical malpractice and this was not a way health care could be delivered ,” he says . “ Nothing like a global pandemic to justify your life ’ s work , and it ’ s sad that it took a global pandemic for this to happen .”
In 2010 , Siddiqui co-founded TeleMed2U . This Roseville-based company , where he serves as chief medical officer , provides telemedicine-based specialty care directly to patients in more than 40 states and in-patient telemedicine at 14 hospitals in four states . Evidently , Siddiqui was ahead of the curve .
In 2019 , Sutter Health did 7,400 video visits in one year . In 2020 , it did 1.1 million . Behavioral health saw the biggest shift . Since 2020 , more than 80 percent of outpatient behavioral health visits have shifted to virtual care . Due to new patient referrals via video , Sutter Health also saw a decrease in no-show rates for both established and
new patients , down to 5-10 percent ( from 15-25 percent ).
Since the pandemic began , telehealth visits in California increased by 61 percent , with one in five patient visits now being conducted via telehealth , according to the California Medical Association . Through apps and software , patients now have more access to health care providers than ever . Video visits give physicians a real-time window into the home spaces of their patients ( What ’ s in the fridge ? Is the
“ Everyone thought that if they had broadband and a camera , they could do telehealth . But none of them took into account the art of telehealth . … The provider has to be comfortable . They can ’ t come on and say , ‘ Hey , can you see me ? I can see you . Wow , this thing really works !’”
DR . JAVEED SIDDIQUI co-founder , TeleMed2U place messy ?) to paint a fuller picture . But the expansion of telehealth services has also exposed long-standing problem areas , such as the unequal access to broadband and medical technology designed without providers in mind .
Still , in this public health crisis , the benefits of patients connecting virtually has been transformative in many ways , according to Dr . Albert Chan , chief digital health officer at Sutter Health . He recounts stories where medical technology led to faster assessments . One woman sent in pictures of her bleeding mole , which helped a dermatologist diagnose her melanoma . Another family had a child who was “ not walking quite right ,” Chan says . A pediatrician observed the child on video , confirmed the parents ’ concern , then ordered an MRI for the child , which ultimately revealed a brain tumor .
“ If we hadn ’ t had technology like this , and limited access to evaluation because of COVID , the diagnosis might have been delayed ,” Chan says . “ But for the doctor to be able to see what the parents were seeing helped them make the diagnosis quickly .”
Policy changes
Prior to the pandemic , reimbursement for telehealth-delivered services was limited , according to Mei Wa Kwong , executive director of the Center for Connected Health Policy . But due to the public health emergency , those barriers were suspended , allowing more people to receive services at home .
The Center for Connected Health Policy operates primarily through grants or federal funds to educate and provide resources to raise awareness . The policy shift has been a boon for people who would otherwise have to travel long distances to see a doctor or
PHOTO COURTESY OF JAVEED SIDDIQUI
60 comstocksmag . com | April 2022