The Rise of Telehealth During the Pandemic – and How Australians Have Adapted
Telehealth has been around for years now, but it's taken centre stage in the healthcare industry since the COVD-19 pandemic spread throughout the world. Now more than ever, adult Australians, specifically the elderly, are embracing remote consultations. Read this article to understand how Australians are adapting to telehealth and what this spells for the future of healthcare.
In this article:
The Rise of Telehealth During COVID-19
Older Australians Adapting Well to Telehealth
Expressed Concerns, Experienced Difficulties With Telehealth
The Future of Telehealth: Evolved Healthcare and Empowered Clients
How Australians Feel About Telehealth in 2020 and Beyond - Key Insights
The Rise of Telehealth During COVID-19
Technological advancement has many driving factors, including opportunity, legislation, competition, or in this case, problem-driven innovation. In other words, in times of crisis, technology will often step in to bridge the gap and help our lives continue uninterrupted.
With the lockdowns, restrictions, and social distancing of COVID-19, we've witnessed a considerable shift to remote working, online shopping, contact tracing apps, and more, as technology-based solutions help Australians go about their lives as best as possible.
With many people unable to leave their homes or attend their doctor's visits as often as before, it's no surprise that the healthcare industry also leveraged technology to continue delivering care for Australians. In fact, in the first half of 2020 alone, more than 7 million telehealth consultations were completed in Australia.
This change in how healthcare is being delivered has forced Australians to adapt – sometimes, they've had no other option. But the question is – how well has telehealth been received in Australia, and what does the future look like?
Older Australians Adapting Well to Telehealth
In May 2020, the Global Centre for Modern Ageing (GCMA), a leading not-for-profit research organisation on the aging phenomenon in Australia, surveyed over 1,200 Australian adults for their study titled Telehealth—Here to stay?. Their objective—to better understand Australians' experiences with telehealth services during COVID-19.
The report, which was published in June 2020, showed that despite the pandemic's disruption, COVID-19 prompted many Australians to adapt to change. This is especially true for telehealth, which encourages people to take their medical consultations over the phone or online versus traditional, face-to-face appointments. In addition to revealing how receptive Australians are to this way of delivering healthcare, the report's most insightful results showed that telehealth is here to stay, with older citizens being among the prime adopters.
In fact, the survey revealed that 67% (two in three) of Australians aged over 60 who used telehealth services during the pandemic felt confident to use it again post-Coronavirus.
Here to stay: 2 in 3 Australians over 60 will continue using telehealth even after COVID.
An essential factor that fuelled this confidence is access to a telephone. By how much? The survey revealed that 44% of Australians aged 60 and over (44%) were more likely than younger Australians (33%) to participate in a telehealth appointment or consultation over the phone.
Further insights from the report are a telling sign that telehealth may be the new normal even after the pandemic:
90% of respondents over 60 saying that they found the experience of an online appointment or consultation the same or better than a normal consultation.
85% of older Australians found their phone-based telehealth experience to be similar to or better than their previous face-to-face consultations.
The same percentage (85%) also felt that telehealth offered them more value for money.
Despite the perceived issues around personal information, the majority (95%) of the survey's older respondents indicated that privacy wasn't a significant concern when using telehealth services.
Expressed Concerns, Experienced Difficulties With Telehealth
Despite Australians' positive reception of telehealth, there remain concerns and difficulties that still need addressing.
The GCMAs report identified the following concerns that still come up among 38% of older Australians who've experienced telehealth during the pandemic:
An inability to have a problem examined/receive usual treatment,
A less personal experience due to lack of body language and cues,
Less perceived warmth and care,
Challenges for people with hearing impairment,
Awkwardness, especially with new clinicians, and
Tech glitches, lack of appropriate tech and lack of tech confidence.
It's clear from these challenges that for telehealth to be entirely embraced by Australians, telehealth service providers need to acknowledge that clients have varying healthcare needs. The telehealth system must then be able to adapt to these needs for more people to have confidence in it.
As not all conditions and consultations are easily managed through telehealth, the Australian Government, through the Department of Health, supports general practitioners in their effort to remain open, allowing those who need face-to-face consultations the opportunity to do so.
The Future of Telehealth: Evolved Healthcare and Empowered Clients
Evolved Healthcare
Telehealth has leapt to centre stage since the pandemic hit worldwide. Its positive reception among adult Australians, especially among those aged 60 and above, poses a unique opportunity for the healthcare industry to take a leap forward. Caregivers, clinicians, and telehealth providers can seize the moment by designing and delivering remote health services that meet clients' needs and address the healthcare systems recurring challenges while continuously adapting to the times.
Our Connected Health service delivery model, which includes personal alarms and fall detectors, places a special emphasis on continual monitoring, trend analysis, and customised care plans. Through this, we can monitoring a person’s health data remotely, inform clinical decision-making and intervene where necessary before a person’s condition deteriorates.
Empowered Clients
Despite the distance, telehealth has brought healthcare providers and their clients closer together than ever before. Through remote consultations and state-of-the-art technology, healthcare is more accessible and affordable, especially to older Australians who are most inconvenienced by long waiting/travel times and medical expenses. When clients are given a chance to set consultations more efficiently, they can take their care into their own hands. This helps empower those who can take charge of their health, especially during (and even after) the pandemic.
Empowering Carers and Clients with Tunstall's Healthcare Monitoring Technology
At Tunstall Healthcare, we believe that everyone should be free to live a healthy, full life in the place of their choice. We've dedicated over 60 years to developing monitored solutions that can enhance the way people experience healthcare, safety, and independence.
Enquire here about our Connected Health monitoring technology today.
