In the access zone: we explain why now you don't have to wait in line at the district polyclinic or wait for a doctor's appointment for months

The word "telemedicine" in some cases is still associated with Kashpirov and mass treatment of ailments through the TV screen. In fact, of course, this is absolutely not the case. Telemedicine is the use of computer and telecommunication technologies to provide medical care.

If it is possible to contact a person from another continent in a few seconds, then it is logical that such an opportunity for instant communication radically changes the possibilities of medicine. Together with Denis Yudchits, co-founder and head of the Online Doctor service, we answer the main questions that make patients go to the district polyclinic and spend unforgettable hours in queues to "just ask".

It is possible and sometimes even necessary. If you get to any healthcare conference, in Russia or in the world, two problems will undoubtedly be voiced at it: an increase in the cost of medicine and a decrease in its availability. And the application, in which you can consult a doctor at any time, solves these problems.

Most of the issues that you go to the doctor with, a specialist can solve with you remotely. At least once having received working doctor's recommendations online, you definitely won't want to go to the clinic next time. To be honest, even with a face-to-face appointment, the doctor is guided by your description of symptoms and the results of tests. It is not always necessary to literally touch the patient.

Residents of the regions have a different situation — most simply cannot get up and go to the doctor, even if they really want to, because there is no necessary specialist within a radius of 100 kilometers, or you need to sign up for him in two months. For them, a remote consultation is the only available opportunity to get recommendations, for example, from a pulmonologist or an allergist. It happens that a local doctor, whose consultation was very difficult to get, still makes a diagnosis, and the patient turns to the Online Doctor service for a second opinion to make sure it is correct. For example, one day the neurosurgeon of the service convinced my mother not to perform an operation to open a neoplasm on her arm until the results of the additional studies recommended by him were received, and he was right.

Today we have almost unlimited access to information — articles on medical topics and analyses of various symptoms can be easily found on the Internet. Many patients do just that — they take unverified recommendations and blindly follow them, which often leads to disastrous results. Health is the basis of an active life, and it is much safer to talk to a qualified doctor remotely once than to speculate. In "Online Doctor", for example, this problem is solved once and for all: choosing specialists through the application, you see their training history, work experience, diplomas, certificates of advanced training, etc. This is the information that we do not know, even when we come to the doctor at the district polyclinic for a full-time appointment.

This is one of the biggest misconceptions. Indeed, there are areas in which the Internet does not work or works worse, but in general there is good coverage in Russia. Plus, when there is no access to the Internet, users of "Online Doctor" can contact a doctor by phone. You call 8(800)333 28 00, you are identified as a client and connected to the doctor on duty. After completing the consultation, you will always be able to find the treatment history and doctor's recommendations in your personal account.

1. You always have the opportunity to contact the doctor on duty — 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year, within three minutes. At any time, wherever you are, a qualified doctor will be in touch with you in a maximum of three minutes. These are doctors who practice in leading medical institutions in Moscow and St. Petersburg. That is, a mother from Vladivostok can consult with a pediatrician in the capital. The doctor's recommendation is not to delay and urgently call an ambulance — this is also medical care. In the same form, you will receive advice at a full-time appointment at the polyclinic.

2. The therapist on duty will advise the right highly specialized doctor, if necessary. In your district polyclinic, the therapist will also write you a referral for an appointment with a highly specialized doctor. Only the "Online Doctor" will significantly save you time and effort.

3. Through the application, the same experienced doctors will decipher your tests and will be able to give recommendations. Some centers offer decryption, but none of the local specialists will tell you what to do with this decryption — you will still have to go to the doctor, in that very queue.

4. The doctor on duty will provide emergency support. Let's say the child lost consciousness — it is clear that it is necessary to call an ambulance, but what to do while she is driving? How to put the baby — straight or raise his head? The concierge doctor will tell you.

5. There are highly specialized specialists who will provide qualified assistance and support for chronic diseases. Among them are doctors of the first category, candidates and doctors of medical sciences. For a second opinion, you can contact narrow-profile specialists, depending on the complexity of the problem. Here is an example from practice. The family went abroad with the child. The child has cerebral palsy, an exacerbation occurred in the Czech Republic. He was taken to a local rehabilitation center, and no one there understood what to do with him, there was no translator. The family had an Online Doctor's policy, and they turned to a neurologist. Through the application, they gave him a medical history and in an emergency, he guided his parents and explained to them how to behave. In the Czech ambulance, the medical history was of little use.

6. Round-the-clock medical support for the regions. People who want to come to a face-to-face appointment are ready to pay money, but there is no specialist needed or there is a distant horizon of recording for him. Here, too, we can cite a case from practice — a child was observed through the service after a complex operation — he was transplanted a kidney. It was no longer so much about emergency assistance as about long-term planning. After such a complex operation, life changes and constant observations and advice from a doctor are necessary.

On January 1, 2018, a new law comes into force — that remote assistance is the same medical care, only with the use of information technology. That is why the responsibility that lies with the doctor is no different from the responsibility during a face-to-face appointment. "Online Doctor" is a provider between a medical institution and a patient: doctors have the same obligations as at a face—to-face appointment. The doctor is guided by practice and professional experience, and in addition to it, there is a special quality control both on the part of the service and on the part of the institution.

The average medical practice experience of Online Doctor specialists is 12 years. Doctors from the St. Petersburg State Pediatric Medical University, the Consultative and Diagnostic Center, the "Clinical Hospital No. 1" of the Presidential Administration of the Russian Federation (Volynskaya) and the Research Institute of Pediatric Surgery and Traumatology, etc. consult through the application.

In order to monitor the quality of services provided and help doctors remember their responsibility to the client, the service has a quality metrics system. The simplest and most obvious is user reviews. Separate control is carried out by the specialists of "Online Doctor". If the consultation lasts less than the average time, the customer service will immediately know about it. When the assessment based on the results of the consultation is below four, or if the doctor does not close the consultation for a long time, the specialists of the client service will check everything and find out what is the matter. Closing a consultation is writing a recommendation. Any user leaves with instructions and an explanation of what actions to take next.

The way it is more convenient for you. You can use the website, or you can download the app to your smartphone in the AppStore or Google Play. In fact, "Online Doctor" is a hybrid of general medical insurance and voluntary. That is, if you are not satisfied with medical care for compulsory medical insurance, but there is no money for VMI, "Online Doctor" is the solution to the problem. One doctor's consultation via the app lasts 30 minutes, in the district polyclinic, the therapist is given half the time for an appointment — only 15 minutes. In any situation, you will be consulted online and either solve your problem or refer you to the right specialist.

An online consultation will not completely replace a full-time appointment with a doctor. But it will save you from endless sitting in queues and wasting time. It is also an opportunity to quickly receive emergency qualified assistance at any time. You do not just communicate with a specialist verbally, but also with the help of a video call you can show the doctor everything that causes you concern. In fact, communicating with a doctor via video chat completely repeats the usual, familiar consultation with a doctor, but saves energy. And every sick person, any doctor will first of all advise them to take care of them.