4 Benefits and Uses of Telehealth in Nursing

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Written By Berry Mathew

Telehealth is a new and contemporary innovation for delivering health services to patients. Due to digitalization, health practitioners can now offer health services to patients in the comfort of their homes. In addition, nursing, in particular, is seeing a boost in telehealth as more patients now prefer to contact their nurses from any desired location rather than a conventional hospital environment. 

Since the coronavirus outbreak, the telehealth industry in the United States of America has seen a boom. After Covid-19, the numbers changed drastically, with 38 times more consumers opting for telehealth services than pre-covid baselines. It is a service easily accessible from mobile devices, apps, or computers. As the world is becoming more used to accessing services virtually, there is no denying that telehealth is the future. 

Nursing through telehealth is a convenient and flexible way of giving and receiving health services. Moreover, it is a service that benefits the health practitioner and the patient. Hence, the following are the advantages of using nursing telehealth services. 

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Hassle-free

Traditional health methods can be time taking, exhausting and expensive. For patients, the trip to the hospital from their home, registering themselves, getting an appointment, and finally, getting their health services is a draining experience. 

Likewise, it is also difficult for nurses as they have to pay for the commute to the hospital and handle their shifts and daily tasks. All this can leave no time for other roles. However, telehealth offers a unique chance for nurses to monitor the health of their patients virtually. 

Nurses can utilize the freedom of telehealth to manage their work responsibilities and plan to study simultaneously. Licenced RNs with a master’s degree planning to upgrade their qualifications can pursue research degrees, such as an MSN to DNP online degree easily. A doctoral qualification is mandatory for advanced practicing nursing and can open up excellent career opportunities for nurses. 

Moreover, it also benefits patients, as they can receive quality service right at their homes in the company of their loved ones. Patients can also avoid chances of catching infections from hospital visits. Similarly, they can receive care in a happy, healthy environment compared to the hospital’s gloomy and distressing atmosphere. Lastly, they do not have to pay transport fares as all the service is remote. 

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Accessible to patients in remote areas

In the United States of America, many areas lack accessibility and convenient access to health facilities and services. For example, states like West Virginia in the USA have one of the least accessible healthcare services and the highest rate of preventable deaths. Moreover, other states such as Mississippi, Alaska, Oklahoma, and Missouri have declining healthcare too. 

Moreover, around 100 hospitals and clinics shut down in the course of nine years, from 2010 to 2019. In addition, many services went out of order after Covid-19. With health services declining in such areas, nurses and physicians also are hesitant to shift to such regions due to limited resources. In addition, locals also struggle with mobility to health centers due to complex transportation logistics. 

However, telehealth is one solution to this problem. Many people can get nursing assistance from their homes in remote areas. It can also significantly lower the cost of rural hospitals and clinics and cater to various areas and patients. In addition, it is cheaper and cuts down the costs of hospital trips. With assistance and support from various organizations, telenursing can be available to anyone from anywhere. 

Cost-effective

One of the best features of telehealth is that it is cost-effective for both nurses and patients. For nurses, telenursing reduces traveling costs. The need for office staff, and office space is considerably reduced. 

Thus, telehealth is undoubtedly a highly affordable option for patients and nurses. Moreover, for patients, it significantly reduces costs. For example, one study shows that a hospital visit costs around 146$, while a telenursing session costs about 79$. Likewise, the telehealth industry is expected to grow from a 90.71 billion dollar industry to a 636.38 dollar industry by 2028. The stellar demand and rise of the industry will even make it more affordable and efficient in the near future. 

Increased patient satisfaction 

Through telenursing, nurses can provide top-quality services. However, giving services through digital platforms needs a specific set of skills and enhance existing ones. Hence, telenursing motivates and encourages nurses to educate themselves and increase their knowledge on how to cater to their patients effectively. 

Similarly, digital monitoring makes patients feel more engaged with their nurses. In traditional hospitals, nurses would have to take rounds. They can only give so much of their time and assistance to patients leaving them lonely and isolated. However, in telenursing, your nurse is with you throughout the session, giving you a good one-on-one experience and leaving the patients more satisfied. 

In addition, patients always feel that someone is watching and caring for them and feel more relaxed. They feel more emotionally satisfied as well, as there is more communication and focused engagement between nurses and patients. Talking to your nurse helps ease off worries and anxiety in patients. Lastly, according to research, around 92.4% of the population was incredibly pleased with telehealth services. Hence, there is no denying that telenursing is the way to go for ultimate satisfaction.

Conclusion 

In contemporary times, the internet and technology have changed the world’s course. Different industries are now shifting to other mediums and platforms due to the rise in digitalization. One of these industries is the health industry, which is now moving to telehealth. Talking about nursing in particular, after Covid-19, there was a massive boost in telenursing as most hospitals were overflowing with patients or inoperative and did not have a place to allocate for patients. Hence, in desperate times telenursing emerged as a lifesaver, and now telehealth is considered a billion-dollar industry. 

Due to its many benefits, more and more patients and nurses are shifting toward it. For example, it is highly cost-effective as it saves transport costs and offers excellent service at your home. Moreover, the private sessions give nurses more time to engage with patients, making them feel more pleased and content with the service. In addition, it is highly cost-effective as it reduces office space and additional expenses for nurses and clients. Lastly, the best part of telenursing is that it is accessible from remote areas providing quality health to underserved places. The benefits of telenursing are many, and the future looks bright for the growth of virtual health services.