Meaning. In times when social distancing is mandatory, providing health and medical services online seems to be a valuable alternative to in-person care at doctors' offices and hospitals. These two terms are often confused or used interchangeably due to their similarity, but they are clearly different:
Telemedicine is primarily limited to clinical diagnoses and monitoring. In contrast, the telehealth sector encompasses technology, services, and education.
The benefits of these new e-services are clear: they allow for the online measurement of key vital signs, the issuing of prescriptions and administration of medication, as well as professional support and care via video calls, etc. – all from the comfort of one's own home. The use of video consultations and visits has proven particularly valuable: given the current coronavirus crisis, it provides optimal support not only for doctors and caregivers but also for (separated) families. e-health solutions from the AAL (Active Assisted Living) sector, such as JAMES Video, protect against infection during these challenging times and offer significant added value to immobile or chronically ill patients by sparing them the arduous trip to the doctor. This trend seems to be already well-established in the US:
According to a study by the American website AMD Global Telemedicine, 79% of patients prefer to schedule doctor's appointments online rather than in person. Furthermore, 70% now prefer online consultations. However, the European telemedicine and telehealth market is also growing rapidly: the European telemedicine market is currently worth 9.93 billion US dollars and is expected to grow to 19.2 billion US dollars by 2024 – a 14.1% annual growth rate.*
COVID-19, demographic changes, cost savings, improved quality, effective care in rural areas, staff shortages, and chronic disease management
In the German healthcare sector, the door seems to be opening for telemedicine and telehealth: six new priority areas are currently planned to be further developed in the coming weeks and months and then implemented into the healthcare system.
Despite global acceptance, both telemedicine and telehealth face obstacles that must be overcome for now. For example, misdiagnoses can occasionally occur; although they can also happen during in-person consultations, they cast a particularly negative light on online consultations. Furthermore, implementation and widespread adoption seem to complicate integration into healthcare systems. However, given global pandemics, an aging population, staff shortages, and the like, telemedicine and telehealth will continue to grow in importance and necessity in the future.