BANGOR, Maine (WABI) - Where the coronavirus pandemic has changed many facets of our lives, we've seen technology come to the rescue.
That includes our health.
TV5 takes a look at how telehealth has brought patients and providers together like never before.
It turns out Zoom isn't just for work meetings and virtual hangouts.
It's also the go-to for medical visits between doctors and patients.
Dr. Alan Jansujwicz, a Cardiologist, said, "Cardiology is actually fairly well set up to do telemedicine with a variety of our patients."
Dr. Alan Jansujwicz has been using telemedicine to see his patients at the hospital in Calais for the last decade, but he never expected to be using it like this.
"It's pretty effective. Like Monday, I saw a patient who really has been having a lot of symptoms from an arrhythmia and he happens to have a device as well, and so I can look at the device, date it, and I can tell what's going on, why he might be having those symptoms. So I was able to devise a new treatment plan for him."
He says just about all his colleagues in the Northern Light Health system are using Zoom to see their patients and have been for the last couple of months while people have been staying at home.
"If we did not have telemedicine, I would not be able to see a lot of my chronic follow up patients. Telemedicine has been really everything for the chronic follow up of non-emergency issues. It's really been the key piece that's allowed us to stay in touch with our patients."Dr. Jansujwicz.
The same goes for Clinical Psychologist Dr. David Prescott.
"I've been surprised by how beneficial doing psychotherapy and some psychological testing over telehealth has been.," explained Clinical Psychologist Dr. Prescott.
Dr. Prescott and his wife Diana have a private practice in Hampden, but instead of seeing patients in person, they've done what many in their field have for the first time: hold virtual therapy sessions.
"It's really allowed us to give remarkable support to people during a time when people are very anxious, very distressed, and feeling emotionally worn down," Dr. Prescott said.
Both doctors say Zoom checks all the boxes when it comes to privacy.
Dr. Prescott added, "So they need to be HIPAA compliant. zoom is one that is compliant with all the regulations that go along with healthcare."
Technical support is always available to help people get going, and there are alternatives like talking over the phone. Doctors just want to make sure people are getting the care they need.
"It's one of the biggest worries in the mental health world right now that the long-term isolation that some people are going through is just going to really start to wear on their mental health. It's really gratifying in a way that people find it helpful," Dr. Prescott explained.
"If you are ill and having problems, go to the hospital. It is safer to get care than to not get care in a situation like that. If you just have chronic problems and you want to speak to her face to face and you want to follow up on your hypertension or your have a blood pressure cuff at home or you want to follow up on your cholesterol levels or something like that, telemedicine is extremely effective," Dr. Jansujwicz added.
Gloss