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Best telehealth platforms for private practices

The best standalone telehealth platforms If your EHR does not come with a telehealth option, fear not. We have compiled a list of the best standalone telehealth platforms. From that list, we have picked our favorite three telehealth vendors for private practices. There are dozens of independent telehealth products well-suited for private practices. Expect to see a plethora of new telehealth offerings in the next year as healthcare IT companies follow the COVID-19 accelerated gold rush. We recommend that you stick with whatever your EHR offers or use one of the lightweight applications covered below. Many of these new technologies will not last. Others will be hobbled together to meet the new market. Unless you are very tech savvy, we urge caution when selecting vendors based on listed integrations and non-essential features. Or hopes to build them. The added workflow efficiencies are negligible for many small practice telehealth workflows. Plus, with relay races and software, the handoff is where catastrophes happen. Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler. – Albert Einstein Common telehealth workflows Appointment is scheduledPatient enters a virtual meeting room on the day of the appointmentSingle instance: The meeting link is the same for each appointment. Examples: Doxy.me, eVisit.Unique instances: The meeting link or password will differ for each appointment. Examples: Mend, Zoom, GoToMeeting, WebEx, Skype, Google Hangout, Teams, and FaceTime.Patient portal: Patient logs in to the patient portal to join a meeting.Patient completes a short intake & consent formProvider enters the room when readyProvider completes documentation and ends the meeting A single instance workflow is often simpler to schedule and can be easier for patients to initiate. Since the meeting link remains constant, you should not need to double schedule, manually send meeting invitations or hassle with a scheduling interface from your EHR. Patients can select your single, static link from your website or from any pre-appointment notifications (texts, emails, calls) and you meet with them by selecting their name. Unique instances can offer additional privacy and scalability. Since patients must first wait to receive a unique meeting link, you will not need to worry about unwanted persons entering your waiting room. To be clear, unwanted entrants should be a minor concern – and only for large multi-region practices. Since unique URLs are created for each appointment, automated reminders, employee turnover and administration is somewhat easier. You will not have patients attempting to enter an old URL after it has been discontinued. You will, however, need to double schedule, manually send invitations or setup an interface. Patient portal workflows offer heighted privacy, scalability and functionality at the cost of patient engagement. The patient must first be registered with your patient portal. Before the meeting, the patient must log in with their username and password. For these reasons, adoption can suffer and patients can tend to arrive late. Single instance workflows generally favor small practices and solo providers. Unique instances can be a better choice for a large practice or health system, as long as they are able to work out the scheduling interface. The scope of this guide is standalone telehealth technologies, not those within an EHR. Therefore, patient portal workflows will not be addressed. Common features among the best telehealth platforms All of the telehealth platforms that we reviewed have a few things in common: HIPAA compliance (i.e. a signed BAA) and 128 or 256-bit AES encryption for data stored at restReliable video and audio transmissionPrivate, secure chatOnline dashboards We picked three platforms that provide the most reliable telehealth experience for small and medium sized private practices. We reviewed each of these, in detail. They are: Doxy.me → best for solo providers and small practices looking for a free plan or simple, reliable telehealth in a matter of minutesMend → best for larger practices who can allocate employee time and money to optimize their telehealth workflowVSee → best for developers or large organizations building an application that will include telehealth Subscribe to our blog’s newsletter so you don’t miss anything!

Provider Spotlight

Provider Spotlight: Dr. Ruppenicker, Psychologist

https://youtu.be/M6cIpCQ4dSY Dr. Ruppenicker has a wealth of knowledge and a treat to speak with! She has had her own practice since 2005, but over 20 years experience working as a licensed mental health provider. Her working experience of 8 pages long (!!!!) range from helping clients with anxiety to OCD and more specific areas as skin-picking or trichotillomania. Hear Dr. Ruppenicker talk about: 1) How ERP drastically changed the course of treating clients with OCD. 2) What a Telemedicine session looks like for her 3) How she is handling her own mental health during the pandemic. For more information please go to : https://drruppenicker.com/

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