When a patient is suffering from a complex illness, they often need care from more than one doctor or medical practitioner. And early intervention and ongoing patient engagement are key to helping patients with complex or life-threatening diseases. Thus, healthcare facilities are turning to multidisciplinary care, which consists of consultation from professionals in different fields with varying perspectives across wide areas of expertise.
Medical experts need to extend their reach beyond the walls of their hospital or practice and actively engage patients in their homes. Therefore, health providers need innovative communication solutions that are simple to use, secure, and provide a level of care that delivers on patients’ requirements.
What is multidisciplinary care?
Multidisciplinary care enables medical professionals from several disciplines to work together and provide comprehensive treatment that covers as many of the patient’s needs as possible. It can either be delivered by a group of medical practitioners from one organization working as a team, or professionals from several different organizations.
A multidisciplinary care team can be formed from all sorts of medical professionals, such as general practitioners, practice nurses and community nurses, dieticians and pharmacists, physiotherapists, surgeons, and therapists, as well as social workers and health educators. Depending on the disease or illness being treated, it can also include medical experts like oncologists and physicians.
Importantly, the medical team can change as the patient’s condition evolves to reflect their clinical and psychosocial requirements. However, it’s also important that the team clearly negotiates and defines the care planning and delivery, which relies on trust and respect, agreed governance structures, systems, and protocols for communication and interaction.
Delivering remote multidisciplinary consults
Video conferencing technology is transforming how healthcare professionals deliver care and simplifying the task of bringing together multidisciplinary care teams. It helps medical professionals to address chronic disease management and care coordination, all while enabling patients to get the care they need when they need it.
A virtual care strategy increases operational efficiency by reducing the cost per case, as well as increasing clinical efficiency and outcomes and improving patient engagement levels.
How multidisciplinary consults help patients
Multidisciplinary consults offer improved patient satisfaction, such as saving them the travel time on getting to and from appointments. It also ensures that patients only need one appointment, in which they can speak to multiple medical professionals at the same time. This type of consult also provides them with multiple perspectives on their diagnosis and the treatment they require, which ensures they get the best possible care and increases their chances of getting the correct prognosis and treatment. Virtual multidisciplinary care is particularly helpful for patients that live in remote areas and aren’t easily able to get to the offices of their healthcare provider or specialist.
Multidisciplinary consults have been particularly helpful for Covid-positive patients with pre-existing conditions. This is specifically notable for patients who have diabetes or heart conditions. While being treated for Covid-19 they can receive treatment from an infectious disease specialist, nutritionist, and primary care physician simultaneously to improve care coordination and patient outcomes.
How Vidyo enables multidisciplinary care
Vidyo offers high-quality, real-time video calls that can be integrated into nearly any clinical workflow. It enables medical professionals to collaborate, consult with patients, and provide real-time care and education to patients. Vidyo Telehealth is purpose-built for healthcare organizations and securely integrates with systems, devices, and software, enabling virtual care and specialty care like cardiology, neurology, and psychology.
For example, the VidyoConnect Patient Room Experience provides a high-quality video environment that allows patients to connect with medical professionals and family members virtually. The HIPPA compliant solution, enables patients to attend scheduled meetings with family members which increases the patient’s ability to adhere to treatment protocols.
The solution provides an inviting and natural interface for patients to review their health information with their doctors and family. This empowers health providers to enhance patient satisfaction, improve the quality of care they can deliver, protect patients’ privacy, and increase operational efficiency.
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