Bryan Long

The Doctor is Online

The COVID-19 pandemic hit the world hard, making social distancing, at least temporarily, the 'new normal'. In response to this, technological advancements sky-rocketed, especially those that enabled things to be done remotely. This was also when the healthcare sector saw a surge in technical advancements. Virtual healthcare started gaining traction and soon became acceptable across the globe. Although virtual healthcare had already started in the healthcare sector, it was after the pandemic that these facilities began to grow rapidly and become more widely available to the masses. Virtual healthcare, in simple terms, refers to a wide range of remote services within the healthcare sector that enable patients to interact with doctors and consultants remotely. In addition to this, virtual healthcare offers patients, physicians, physician assistants, and other healthcare professionals an opportunity to share information and relevant content and conduct online consultations and interactions. Telemedicine also falls into this virtual healthcare category. It primarily refers to providing patients an alternative to traditional, in-office health visits, where clinical consultations may take place between patients and healthcare providers from any locale with an internet connection instead of directly visiting the hospitals or clinics.