Contents
«Telemedicine uses modern communication and diagnostic tools. There are disciplines, such as cardiology or laryngology, where we already have solutions that are a fantastic help for the doctor “- said Artur Drobniak, vice president of the Supreme Medical Chamber during the panel” Telemedicine: future perspectives, between necessity and effectiveness “organized by Medonet during the Economic Forum in Karpacz .
- During the pandemic, telemedicine has become an alternative to a stationary visit. According to specialists – she passed the exam
- Telemedyna is an increasingly wide range of services. These are not only telephone consultations or e-prescriptions, but also remote monitoring of our health
- Therefore, many communities are concerned about the planned changes to the provisions on telemedicine, which may hinder access to telemedicine services in Poland.
- The draft regulation, if it passes in this form, will withdraw telemedicine a few years back – says Ligia Kornowska, managing director of the Polish Federation of Hospitals
- More information can be found on the TvoiLokony home page
During the Economic Forum in Karpacz, Medonet organized a panel on “Telemedicine: prospects for the future, between necessity and effectiveness”. It was led by Diana Żochowska (MedTvoiLokony), and the guests were: Ligia Kornowska (managing director of the Polish Federation of Hospitals and leader of the Coalition for AI in Health), Anna Goławska (deputy health minister for digitization), Jan Pachocki (president of the Telemedicine Working Group) and Artur Drobniak (vice-president of the Supreme Medical Chamber).
Telemedicine passed the test during the pandemic
According to the interviewees, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic contributed to the development and increase in popularity of telemedicine.
«Since 2015, telemedicine has been a fully-fledged element of health services in Poland. Thanks to the pandemic, it has made a leap forward. Doctors became convinced of this form of contact with the patient, suddenly they were faced with a fait accompli. Before the pandemic, it was said that doctors would not be convinced by telemedicine, but that changed during the pandemic. Doctors with a high median age have struggled during this difficult time. It is a valuable social capital »- said Jan Pachocki.
«The doctors and patients alike passed this first test. Now, to talk about development, you need to improve quality, use more and more technology and make the patient feel taken care of. Telemedicine should be seen as a way to prevent the patient from feeling left to himself, ”added the president of the Telemedicine Working Group.
- Telemedicine – what is it? What technologies does telemedicine use? [WE EXPLAIN]
In his opinion, however, this is just the beginning of the road. «The perception of telemedicine has changed COVID-19, but it’s a job that still requires a lot of effort. For telemedicine to develop, several factors must occur. According to our assessment, these pillars are: quality, awareness, financing, IT and data, and good law. It is worth showing that telemedicine is a high-quality and high-tech change »- emphasized Pachocki.
What is telemedicine?
Artur Drobniak pointed out that medicine is not only medicine practiced over the phone. It is much more. «Telemedicine uses modern communication and diagnostic tools. There are disciplines, such as cardiology or ENT, where we already have solutions that are a fantastic help for the doctor. Cardiac rehabilitation, used in many countries, is slowly becoming popular in Poland. Research shows that rehabilitation with the use of telemedical devices gives better results than in-patient rehabilitation, the patient complies with the recommendations more ».
«Interesting devices are being developed. Device for breast examination, hearing test, vision test. Not all of these technologies have already been assessed, but we hope that they will be disseminated on the Polish market and that the best devices will be reimbursed »- said the vice president of NIL.
Pachocki also mentioned another remotely available option. «Work on telemonitoring of implantable devices is nearing completion. And cardiac telemonitoring should be extended to include post-stroke arrhythmia recorders, the so-called ILRs, thanks to which during a pandemic we could protect those people who have contraindications for vaccination. »
- How much do you know about telemedicine? Check!
Ligia Kornowska emphasized that the rapid development of telemedicine took place even before the era of the coronavirus. «Behind us is a huge success in implementing e-solutions – e-prescriptions, e-referrals, e-exemptions before the pandemic. I am glad that we are going further, for example in the subject of electronic medical documentation. Before the pandemic, almost 100 percent. benefits were provided stationary, during the pandemic it turned out to be 80 percent. services provided in POZ were thanks to telemedicine, mainly teleporting. And teleporces are just a small part of telemedicine. Telemedicine is, for example, collecting information about a patient from various devices and responding to this information” – she said.
The deputy minister of health also spoke about the fact that a lot is happening in extending the possibilities of telemedicine. «It is already happening. Today we have Home Medical Care, a platform that provides remote devices such as pulse oximeters. Doctors can see the health of patients in real time. We carry out a pilot of remote stethoscopes, we conduct a pilot of telemedicine bands that measure pressure and pulse, which also allow you to track it in real time. There are plans for remote CTG or EKG pilotage. We will be adding these tools all the time. Our goal is to introduce these tools to the public system »- said Anna Goławska.
New regulation – changes in telemedicine
The subject of the discussion was also a draft regulation developed by the Ministry of Health, limiting the use of telemedicine. In-patient contact with a doctor will be required during the first consultation in the event of a new disease, a change in symptoms in a chronic disease, or in the case of children under 6 years of age.
- New rules of teleport advice. Experts sound the alarm: these regulations will make access to doctors difficult
«There should be one thing changed. There are several rules that say when a visit cannot be telemedicine. When symptoms change or a new health problem arises. In our opinion, this is an entry into the competences of the doctor and medical guidelines. Such provisions limit the development of telemedicine. We have many guidelines, from cardiologists and scientific societies that show that teleconsultation is desirable and recommended in these cases»Said Jan Pachocki.
«An administrative approach to regulating medicine is not an optimal solution. The most important thing is the patient’s right to decide how to make an appointment, but let the doctor leave the rest of the medical stuff »- he added.
“I would like to emphasize the basic principle that a doctor who examines a patient remotely has the right and obligation to call the patient for a stationary visit at any time, if it is not possible to make an appropriate diagnosis during a telemedicine service” – noted Artur Drobniak.
- Do you want to have your heart under control? The right research package will help.
«Limiting medical freedom consisting in the fact that it is not possible to treat a child up to 6 years of age or a patient whose blood pressure has increased, restricts medical practice. We don’t like it. Let us emphasize the necessity of a stationary visit if the telemedicine visit does not provide us with basic information »- added the vice president of NIL.
Changes in telemedicine – pediatricians are protesting
As noted by Drobniak, paediatricians are particularly appalled by the regulation. «They often treat telemedicine as a trio. So the parents of the child are calling and presenting the symptoms. And the doctor says that for now we are turning on antipyretic treatment. We observe 8 hours and take action depending on the effects. If the symptoms are severe, we report to the emergency room of the hospital. Now every child up to the age of 6 has to be brought to the clinic and pediatricians don’t like it ».
Ligia Kornowska is equally skeptical of the proposed changes. «The draft regulation, if passed in this form, will put telemedicine back a few years back. What we have earned in the pandemic may be lost. We understand the desire to regulate services, because there have been cases where telemedicine has been abused. However, standards have been developed which, while providing good quality services, at the same time care for the well-being of the patient and the doctor. It should not rely on do’s and don’ts, but more on education »she said.
- Telemedicine – frequently asked questions and answers [EXPLAINED]
«The draft prohibits the use of telemedicine in a broad spectrum. On the part of the doctor and the patient. Let’s not go that way. The patient and the physician should decide together how this benefit should be provided. Telemedicine is a great tool to lead patients with chronic diseases in such a way that these diseases are not the center of their lives, that they enable normal functioning and, at the same time, constant monitoring in a telemedical manner »- said Kornowska
And what was the position of the government side during the meeting? «We listen to various stakeholders, we work on these solutions, we will improve them in the futureand »- said Deputy Minister Goławska.
«We are in a difficult situation, we listen to doctors, we listen to solution providers and patients. Unfortunately, when it comes to the functioning of PHC during the pandemic, the patients strongly criticized it and we had to react »- she added.
Telemedicine as a remedy for improving health protection
Finally, the guests commented that “telemedicine is a remedy for improving the health system as it shortens the time of first contact with a doctor and saves money by eliminating unnecessary stationary visits”.
Deputy Minister Goławska: «I partially agree. The first visit should involve getting to know the patient, so telemedicine is not the best form of providing this service, but subsequent visits – I agree – can take place without the need to come to the clinic, it will help reduce queues, increase access to services and increase patient comfort ».
«I would almost agree, but I would edit it a bit. Well-understood telemedicine is one of the tools to optimize the improvement of the quality of patient care. It is an essential element in the development of medicine. I can agree with this opinion»- said Ligia Kornowska in turn.
- 7 trends in telemedicine for 2021
Artur Drobniak also did not have an unequivocal position. “I cannot agree completely, due to the specificity of individual specialties. As a practicing gynecologist-obstetrician, I cannot imagine that every visit would take place in the telemedical form. I have patients from various regions of Poland. I can do the first telemedicine so that the patient can see what tests to do and how to prepare for visits. And the next one should be stationary. Let’s use these tools wisely. The doctor is not always the guru who decides, and it is not always the patient. It is a kind of cooperation »- said Drobniak.
«The assumption of telemedicine is different than taking something out of personal care. It is more support, Telemedicine is an additional form of contact, an additional tool, giving a faster first contact. This is a new component of medical care. He will not take the patient’s personal visit, he will make the patient know where to go for a personal visit, whether to the hospital or clinic»Concluded Jan Pachocki.
This may interest you:
- Tomasz Grzelewski, MD, PhD on the advantages of telemedicine: I can help an ocean of patients
- According to GPs, teleporces revealed that we are technologically handicapped, irresponsible and that we often lie
- How to prepare for teleportation?
The content of the medTvoiLokony website is intended to improve, not replace, the contact between the Website User and their doctor. The website is intended for informational and educational purposes only. Before following the specialist knowledge, in particular medical advice, contained on our Website, you must consult a doctor. The Administrator does not bear any consequences resulting from the use of information contained on the Website. Do you need a medical consultation or an e-prescription? Go to halodoctor.pl, where you will get online help – quickly, safely and without leaving your home.