Telemedicine :
A modern marvel or an indemnity headache ?
By Dr Elizabeth Meyer , Chief Medical Officer at PPS Health Professions Indemnity
Telemedicine allowed medical professionals to interact with patients regardless of the limitations caused by the COVID-19 pandemic . But is this a future solution for medical care or rather a massive new indemnity headache for health professionals ?
The COVID-19 pandemic changed the world irrevocably and it had a significant effect on the medical industry . It accelerated a worldwide shift to telemedicine and this will certainly lead to insurance and regulatory change . The emergency caused the Health Professions Council of South Africa ( HPCSA ) to relax the previous strict regulations regarding telemedicine and allow virtual consultations . It also changed the name “ telemedicine ” to that of “ telehealth ” to allow other health specialists , such as psychologists , to practise virtually . The HPCSA has subsequently been urged by many medical aids to bring about permanent regulatory acceptance and has confirmed that the regulations will be reconsidered after the pandemic ends .
Be as it may , telemedicine is here to stay and is increasingly gaining traction . Patients have gotten used to the ease of a virtual consultation in the comfort of their own homes and doctors can consult more patients .
Although doctors are now allowed to consult with patients outside South Africa , insurers are generally not indemnifying healthcare professionals ( HCPs ) consulting outside the borders of South Africa .
Will telemedicine increase insurance premium rates ? It remains to be seen exactly what the situation is after the pandemic , but a gut response is that if more patients are seen , there may be more potential liability . Experienced doctors have expressed concerns that the chances of a misdiagnosis or failure to identify important signs are much higher as there is no face-to-face contact and physical examination . Most patients are notoriously incorrect in their descriptions of symptoms and signs and often have pre-conceived diagnoses which may influence their description of the complaint . Many doctors have expressed concern that telehealth will weaken the doctor-patient relationship and lead to more long-term dissatisfaction . This may ultimately lead to greater complaints and claims .
Medical practitioners , especially those doing elective surgery , took a massive knock during the pandemic . Patient numbers were down between 60 % and 90 %. Generally , there were fewer complaints and claims . Most insurers decreased their premiums or gave premium holidays to policyholders . However , now with the patient numbers rising and elective surgeries fully scheduled , it is expected that complaints and claims will increase significantly .
Insurance premium rate increases have slowed but are expected to return to more normal increase patterns as the pandemic becomes part of our lives . It is
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