Remote working and medical businesses - why mobile healthcare is so crucial in the modern world

Overview on Mobile Health (mHealth)

Mobile health is revolutionizing how healthcare solutions are delivered to patients, as they provide a way for patients to receive treatment from the comfort and safety of their own homes. Because of their convenient format, which allows for video consulting and messaging services, patients are able to confer with professionals and specialists regardless of their location. As a result, more patients are able to receive help, especially those in isolated, rural communities, and practitioners can broaden their clientele. The success of mobile health is also reflected in the exponential growth within the industry, with it expected to be worth 311.98 billion USD by 2027, which is insane! Choosing to use remote working for medical businesses means you can reduce staff, administration, and overhead costs, which is a perfect way to help your practice flourish. With mobile health, you can ensure that you are supplying the most efficient resources that work towards providing your patients with the highest level of care. 

Advantages of remote work for businesses

You may be wondering what’s in it for you, and the answer to that is a lot! There are numerous advantages to mobile healthcare, and choosing to employ its services will prove immensely beneficial to your workplace. Especially within the time of this COVID pandemic, it is crucial that you consider the positives to mobile health that can greatly boost the quality of your service. 

1. Improved safety - You can eradicate and minimize risks through mobile healthcare, as there is no need for in-person visits! The danger of infections from viruses can be significantly reduced, which is always a plus. 
2. Increase resources - With the existing resource restraints, it is super important that you find ways to overcome this common obstacle and avoid unnecessary business strains. Remote work promotes real-time monitoring, which can mean that expertise can be shared without resource shortages present in facilities and rural communities. It’s a win-win!
3. Allows you to work smarter - Remote work means that you can reduce commute times, as well as any associated stress and burnout, in addition to increasing productivity and employee morale. 
4. Supports convenience - Mobile health doesn’t have to be complicated! In fact, it’s the complete opposite. It’s never been easier for patients to access their electronic medical records, as well as their medical prescriptions, and any other medical history-related information. 
5. Higher engagement - Believe it or not, despite being connected through the screen, many patients report high levels of engagement with mobile technology. Using patient portals, where patients can schedule appointments, contact specialists, and receive notifications from one place, it is now easier to assess and oversee information. Patients can have a larger managerial role within the healthcare realm, which makes mobile health a great option. 

Remote working: what can health professionals learn from business?

The remote working lifestyle and services are a highly advantageous way of delivering healthcare solutions to patients, and working towards fostering strong practitioner and patient relationships through innovative mobile practices. By working from home, healthcare professionals can develop enhanced communication through video consultations and messaging services, and can ensure that patients are receiving treatment regardless of where they are in the world. It’s an amazing feat that strengthens trust and relationships, without the hassle of meeting in person, which may entail long wait times. Because remote working doesn’t rely on a lot of the cues that you would receive in-person, it means that mobile medical health can encourage practitioners to lead differently. 

Engaging with patients online, as well as creating, structuring, and executing productive models amongst employees can also be a valuable learning skill. It requires a different perspective when it comes to measuring productivity, with an emphasis on outcomes rather than time in the workplace. Practitioners can learn to communicate effectively with their words, with less reliance on non-verbal communication, and healthcare professionals can also ensure they have robust policies and practices in place that are HIPAA compliant, encouraging effective healthcare. The remote working sphere has a lot to offer for patients, employees, and senior practitioners alike, and allows for greater flexibility that can meet the majority of healthcare needs. 

There are a variety of practices involved in remote working that will lead to significant benefits for your business. For instance, not only can you communicate with staff and patients through emails, messaging, and video consulting services, but you can also book and schedule appointments within an optimized system. You can minimize no-shows, and thus additional costs, as well as ensure that patients are reminded of upcoming appointments. Patients can also access a portal with all of their personal medical and payment history available for easy viewing, and practitioners can store clinical documents without fear of jeopardized information. There’s no end to what mobile remote working can do for you and your business, and taking advantage of its services can ensure that you’re making the most of what healthcare has to offer. 

Challenges of mHealth technology

Naturally, there are also some challenges to mobile health and its services, which can include security concerns. As everything is stored online, security breaches aren’t too uncommon, and this is exemplified in the first half of 2020, where 3.8 million individual healthcare records were compromised. While this number is decreasing, it’s still possible for healthcare data to be hacked or leaked. With the right mobile health technology, that is secured on the cloud and holds information within encrypted servers, this risk can be easily avoided. 

The future of healthcare is mobile

Especially within the age of the pandemic, there is a growing need for patients to be seen by healthcare professionals, in an environment that is safe and accessible. This is where mobile health steps in; it is the perfect way to connect and consult over healthcare matters, without risking further spread, and in a way that reduces wait and commute times. There are various reasons why it is considered the future of healthcare, including:

1. Cost savings - Mobile healthcare can reduce overhead costs, as well as administrative and other unnecessary staff costs. This means you can allocate funds to developing, upgrading, and advancing other areas of your business to boost productivity and quality. Nice!
2. Improved health outcomes - Not only this, but you can actually improve the quality and standard of care, as well as overall health outcomes. This means reducing facility use and building greater trust between patients through the comfort of your home. 
3. Reduced no-shows - Nothing is more frustrating than no-shows, as not only are they annoying to deal with, but they can rack up expensive costs. With mobile healthcare, you can decrease no-shows by up to 99%!

Further reading:

• Mobile technology's presence in healthcare
• The adoption of mobile healthcare by hospital's professionals: An integrative perspective