The latest technological advancements have revolutionized multiple industries and changed how the world works. Telemedicine can make all the visits to your doctor, physician or therapist more accessible and easy. Conventionally, diagnoses require an appointment, waiting in line, and making changes to your schedule. A clinic with a good Telemedicine program can provide healthcare services to its patients anywhere and anytime with the help of multiple telecommunication applications available in this modern day and age. It includes all the communication services and applications, such as video calls, emails, and text. It does not have to be audio-based.

There are three different types of telemedicine treatment:

1) Store & Forward

This involves the use of documented medical reports and medical images like CT scans and X-ray sheets. Instead of having a time-taking meeting with the patient, a doctor can receive these reports with the help of any online communication method e.g. email, IM etc.  The doctor can then make their diagnosis based on those reports. This also solves the problem of secrecy and privacy. A patient will feel much more secure sharing their private details and medical files on email rather than in person.

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2) Remote Patient Monitoring

This enables physicians to keep a day-to-day check on their patient’s vitals and reports. RPM or remote patient monitoring services provide an interface that will not only check the vitals of a person with high blood pressure but also send it to his physician instantly. This is great because it is a much quicker process and can solve the problem of undiagnosed conditions turning out to be fatal. The doctor and physician can be quick to raise concern when they spot any discrepancies in the patient’s health, and this will ultimately lower the risk of emergencies.

3) Real-time Telehealth

Real-time telehealth is one of the most used and effective forms of telemedicine. This uses the real-time interaction of a doctor, physician or a therapist. It can involve the use of multiple real-time audio-video and messaging apps. Real-time telemedicine solves many problems for the patients who have trouble making it out of their house. The patients who find it hard travelling long distances can also benefit from just having a microphone, webcam, and an internet connection. They can visit their doctors from the comfort of their own homes. Doctors also benefit greatly from real-time telehealth programs because they are able to manage their work-life balance by being able to work conveniently from their homes.

What Can Telemedicine Be Used For?

Telemedicine is extremely useful for patients that have illnesses, such as allergies, diabetes, respiratory problems, and mental health issues. It can also be good for prevention and wellness information. A patient who cannot move due to an injury or sickness can benefit greatly from the use of telemedicine.

Telemedicine for Sound Disorders

Telemedicine can be an impeccable solution for people with sound disorders. A person with sound disorders usually does not need to go through tests that involve intravenous needles or ultrasounds. This makes the diagnosis accessible from the comfort of the house. Another reason Telemedicine can prove to be beneficial is because of the privacy that it provides an individual. Most of the cases of sound disorders go unreported. This is because the people suffering from it feel embarrassed to talk about it.

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People with sound disorders like Misophonia or Hyperacusis are often socially awkward and avoid face-to-face interaction. Telemedicine solves this problem and can provide healthcare with the help of email or chat. Treatments for sound disorders are often therapeutic and require long durations of counseling sessions. This plays right into one of the great advantages of Telemedicine since it will not require a patient to travel long distances every day. Telemedicine system is also a great source for making treatments cost efficient. It saves the cost of travel and appointment fee making it accessible for low-income workers.

Sound therapy is a treatment for Misophonia and Tinnitus. This therapy exposes a person to the irritable sounds that their brains perceive. For example, sound exposure uses noise-producing devices that treat the conditions, Misophonia and Tinnitus. This technique is easily applicable in a Telemedicine system since it only requires a headset and a source of music or sound. Modern technology, like internet service and a computer can perform this operation easily.

Conclusion

Telemedicine has the potential to revolutionize the way we treat sound disorders. The two primary therapies for sound disorders involve Cognitive behavioral therapy and sound exposure therapy. Evidence suggests that these therapies are easily applicable in a telemedicine system. Sound disorders like Misophonia, Hyperacusis or Tinnitus can be evidently treated and managed in a Tele-medical system. Not only that, but as technology improves, telemedicine solutions to sound disorders can be better than practically implied solutions. Visit us at Tinnitus Cognitive Center™.

Tinnitus Cognitive Center™
Stephen Geller Katz LCSW
646-213-2321