Prime Medic's Blog
The Future Of Having A Video Consultation With A Doctor
The future of telehealth services such as Prime Medic is looking brighter than ever before. If you have been using telemedicine services for having a video consultation with a doctor then there is great news for you as well!
Back on the 8th of April this year, the Senate set up and created a Select Committee specifically regarding the Australian Government’s response to the Coronavirus pandemic.
After many public hearings in Parliament House, the Select Committee agreed with the RACGP’s (the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners) recommendation to make telehealth a permanent feature in the Australian health system.
The extension of Medicare-funded telehealth services
The Financial Technology and Regulatory Technology’s interim report was held on the 2nd of September this year. It was there where the Senate Select Committee recommended the extension of telehealth services that are Medicare-funded beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal is to provide greater control and increased choice over patient’s health services.
In the interim report, it stated that the Select Committee had received an overwhelming amount of support from many medical specialists and general practitioners for expanding the availability of many telehealth services. They stated that telemedicine services had played a crucial role in transforming the Australian healthcare system in not only responding better to the COVID-19 pandemic but also for the future as well.
Providing greater healthcare access to rural regions
Telehealth services have been embraced by many rural patients and doctors. It provides improved patient outcomes, cost-efficient healthcare services and much wider access for many Australians living outside of metropolitan areas.
The Senate Select Committee had also highly emphasised the importance of Australians living in remote and rural regions having access to professional healthcare during the current Coronavirus pandemic.
As we move forward into a post-pandemic future, Australians living in these remote areas must continue to have their medical and healthcare needs adequately addressed with the use of telehealth service providers. The ideal goal is to have Medicare allow every Australian to have universal access to various forms of telehealth services.
The bright future ahead
As Australia is currently experiencing a rapid expansion of telehealth services, the Government has been called upon by the RACGP to fund research into various areas of delivering telehealth services such as:
1. What the impacts of adopting telehealth services on such a large-scale have been during and after the pandemic for assisting with future allocation of funds.
2. The role telehealth plays in various contexts such as Torres Strait Island and Aboriginal primary healthcare.
3. Developing efficient models for ensuring that high-quality healthcare is provided through telehealth services for the management and treatment of various health conditions.
As more research and funding is allocated to telehealth, the future post-COVID-19 is looking bright. To experience the benefits that many Australians are already taking advantage of, download our Prime Medic app and have an online video consultation with a doctor today!
Explore our website to learn all the information you need to get started including our range of online healthcare services.
