Telehealth Isn’t Going Anywhere
 

This moment in health care. At the end of last month, COVID-19 began to rise in the Eastern United States. Although these cases pose less of a fatal risk to those infected, the evolving pandemic landscape prompts us to look at how health care has changed in recent years and consider where it’s headed next.
 
No more washing grocery bags. While we no longer wash down our groceries in the garage, telehealth visits seem to be here to stay, and technology to enhance the effectiveness of remote care is here to grow.
 
Technically, we are getting better. Innovations in wearable tech and medical devices are equipping doctors to treat their patients remotely. Dr. Darren Sidney, an electrophysiologist with Charleston Heart Specialists, has used implantable tech to monitor his patients’ heart rhythm, wherever they are in the world. Tech savvy patients with wearable devices such as an Apple Watch are making heart monitoring even more convenient for patients and practitioners.
 
You can’t hold hands with your computer. Telehealth enables medical connections more conveniently, but it can’t replace the humanity of creating relationships and holding someone’s hand through the hard stuff. “We have to be very careful about not overutilizing virtual visits, even though they are clearly convenient,” said Dr. Steven Newman, a primary care physician with Poinsett Family Practice in Greenville.