Telemedicine Essay
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Question 1
The emergence of technology has changed health care delivery over the last 20 years. Imagine that your clinic proposed adding telemedicine as a health care delivery method.
Outline the specific steps you would take when conducting an analysis to determine the costs and implementations of this addition.
Answer 1
The steps to undertake when implementing costs and services of telemedicine include:
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Performing a background check to assess the efficiency of the system. The review is performed through benchmarking and literature analyzing.
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The second factor to consider is the licensure requirements to comply with HIPAA regulations.
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The third step is to define the clinic’s objective, in terms of the short term and long term goals that are required to be achieved.
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Upon analysis of the standardization and its efficiency, there is need to estimate the hardware and software components. The hardware and software would be efficient in estimating the cost of the project.
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Another aspect to consider is the training of the staff, who would manage the operations of the system.
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Additionally, the maintenance aspects should be evaluated as part of operational cost. Hence, identifying personnel(s) in charge for the technicalities involved.
All in all, the implementation requires due diligence research on reliable systems, licensure compliance, and defining the scope of the project to better estimate the budgeting cost.
Question 2
Design a strategic vision that illustrates how your clinic can implement a telemedicine initiative within three years, and decide whether this would be cost-effective for your clinic. Include concepts from peer-reviewed journal articles.
Answer 2
The strategic vision that the clinic can take in implementing the telemedicine within the first three years is to connect more than 3000 clients who would seek consultation services, physiotherapy and drug prescription remotely. The clinic, strategically, targets 3000 clients since it’s a relatively new idea and it must be advertised to enhance its popularity. The plan is cost-effective considering that services would entirely be discharged online, using video chat apps. Most importantly, it reduces the cost incurred by patients, creating a win-win scenario for both the clinic and clients (Michaud et al, 2018). At a subscription cost of $20, clients would receive consultation services at a subsidized cost compared to the conventional services that range from $50 to $100. With the capital, the clinic would effectively manage its operations. The cost of maintaining the platform is lower at $1000 annually, yet its benefits are high. Besides it can also be used for internal staff communication within the facility. In general, the vision is to attract a total of 3000 who would reduce the cost of attending to patients, yet the clients would also benefit from reduced consultation charges.
References
Michaud, T. L., Zhou, J., McCarthy, M. A., Siahpush, M., & Su, D. (2018). Costs of home-based telemedicine programs: a systematic review. International journal of technology assessment in health care, 34(4), 410-418