In a recent story in Chiropractic Economics, chiropractor Jeffrey Cronk argues, “Perhaps no other area of medicine is better suited for remote appointments and digital treatment sessions [than chiropractic].”
So first, lets look at the “why” behind chiropractic telemedicine. Cronk makes some good points:
- Because patients notoriously neglect their at-home exercises, frequent check-ins via telemedicine can serve as regular reminders to help patients maintain health or recover from injuries. Doctors can also lead patients through the exercises during the telehealth check to ensure they stay on track.
- Telemedicine affords time to focus on overall wellness—eating well, drinking enough water and inflammation-reducing exercises.
- Telemedicine can be more frequent than in-office visits, allowing patients to ask questions as they have them, or doctors to change plans more quickly when they learn what is working best for the patient.
- It strengthens the doctor/patient relationship.
Makes sense. But how?
First of all, you want to understand your state’s laws relating to telehealth billing. In this blog by NCMIC, they discuss laws, service codes and considerations relating to insurance providers, including Medicare. It emphasizes that 37 states have parity laws in place requiring payers to cover telemedicine to the same extent as face-to-face services.
Next, you need software, hardware and a plan. Here’s a Quick Start Guide from the Evidence Based Chiropractor. It includes technology and care-level recommendations, plus how to market your new telemedicine sessions.
Finally, if you are a PulStar chiropractor, you’ll want to tap into the system’s telemedicine capabilities. Because the PulStar operates on a Mac computer, you can share your screen with a patient anytime to review past adjustments—or, if you’re sending patients home with their automated reports, they can use those for reference. For a new patient, you can also demonstrate the PulStar via the session to show how the system works in your clinic.
And stay tuned! Our developers will be announcing a new feature within the next couple of months that will help doctors explain their treatment plans in a digestible digital format. Keep an eye out for that announcement!
