Telemedicine Reaches Out to Patients
SoutheastHEALTH is reaching out to patients through telemedicine in Dexter and Perryville, Mo., eliminating the need for some patients to make long trips to the doctor.
“Currently, we are offering various levels of telemedicine service in endocrinology and cardiology,” says Debbie Leoni, director of Cardiovascular Outreach Services.
On the Monitor
“You can talk to and see your doctor via a computer monitor and internet connections. The doctor can examine and diagnose the patient with the help of special cameras,” she explains. The general exam camera magnifies what the doctor is able to view. An electronic stethoscope allows the doctor to listen to the patient’s lungs and heart.
Southeast Endocrinology physicians Darren Allcock, DO, and Wu Wen, MD, PhD, welcome the new technology.
“I think it is fantastic,” says Dr. Allcock, adding that it’s particularly helpful for patients who have “a hard time” making long trips.
Dr. Allcock says his patients come from a wide area, extending throughout southeast Missouri and into parts of Arkansas, Tennessee and southern Illinois. Many of them have a long way to travel to see an endocrinologist.
Patient Friendly Technology
Telemedicine, which is in its early stages at SoutheastHEALTH, already has garnered support from Southeast Endocrinology patients in southeast Missouri who can have their follow-up visit in Doctors Park, Suite 4, on the Southeast Health Center of Stoddard County campus in Dexter, Mo., rather than have to make the long journey to Cape Girardeau, Dr. Allcock points out.
Dr. Wen says telemedicine makes follow-up visits “easier and more convenient” for patients.
Geneva Vaughn of Bloomfield, Mo., suffers from diabetes. She says it’s great that she can drive a short distance to Dexter for a telemedicine appointment with Dr. Allcock rather than having to make a nearly 100-mile roundtrip to Cape Girardeau and back.
Geneva’s not intimidated by the technology. “It doesn’t bother me one little bit,” she says. “I am ready for this. It’s amazing what they can do.”
Telemedicine Clinics
Southeast Endocrinology currently has telemedicine clinics at Dexter twice a month on Thursday afternoons. More clinics could be offered in the future, Dr. Allcock says.
As with a regular office visit, there is a nurse in the exam room with the patient, he notes. The nurse will contact the physician for the start of the telemedicine session. She will stay in the room to get orders and make sure there are no technical problems.
Board-certified cardiologist and cardiac electrophysiologist Gabe Soto, MD, PhD, of Cardiovascular Consultants in Cape Girardeau is an advocate of telemedicine. “Through telemedicine, we have the opportunity to provide expert consultative services to patients seeking care in their local community hospitals,” he notes.
“This represents another example of SoutheastHEALTH offering area residents high quality healthcare at a low cost and close to home, and is in keeping with SoutheastHEALTH’s continued expansion of services throughout the region,” he says.
To learn more about telemedicine, visit SEhealth.org/telemedicine.
