The Case for Establishing an Online Medical Practice by Doctors
Better Patient Care
The internet is often used for transfer of all types of medical data. Particularly with respect to radiology, the technology now exists to transmit CAT or PET scan images over the web for analysis by physicians in remote locations, or to transfer patient information quickly whether it's across the country or around the world.
Unfortunately, this technology is seeing limited use and usually only in affiliation with larger, teaching medical centers. Transfer of individual patient information is constrained by the HIPPA regulations to the point that signatures are required for exchange of that type of data and tend to be transmitted in paper form or by fax. While some medical facilities maintain advanced databases for patient records, the information contained in them remains closely held.
Maintaining a database of patient records will make filing simpler for employees, free up office space that was once dedicated filing cabinets, allow for fewer mistakes on charts and quicker and more accurate retrieval and transfer by any medium.
Local Health Resources
The most likely place to find a physician's name, specialty and location on the web is through the regional online service listings. There are probably half a dozen 'yellow page' ecommerce type services in most major metropolitan areas that have medical listings.
Additionally, there are the 'city search' type web hosted services that provide local information on entertainment, restaurants and local attractions - and will also provide legal and medical listings. There are dedicated listing services such as yourmd.com that are more comprehensive, providing specialty information and an area for the physician to provide comments on treatment focus and philosophy, but provide only a basic phone number and address listing. A small monthly fee is charged.
Personal Medical Websites
If a physician chooses to utilize online listing services, it would be of substantial value if those listings included a clickable web address for the individual doctor or practice. Any medical practice or professional listed online should consider establishing its own hosted web site, so that the browsing consumer can click to a dedicated page introducing the doctor(s) and the practice specialties. Include your educational background, previous hospital employment, and speciality in your professional profile. Include a contact form or email address on your website so that people who may be interested in becoming patients can get in touch with you. Include your hours, address, phone number, and a photo. Specify all of the services you offer and the insurance plans you take. Give as much information as possible.
Educate Your Current Patients And Attract New Ones
There are a couple of specialties that have recognized the value of using online presentation of information. In sports medicine, for example, it is common practice for injury clinics to have websites where patients can learn about the clinic's guiding principles in rehabilitation, surgical procedures, and the doctors and nurses who treat their patients.
Another is pediatrics: a field where many group practices have established websites in order to create an introductory environment designed to put the browsing parent at ease. The practice's doctors' brief biographies are available there, along with their relevant specialities.
A lot of doctors who have their own websites host basic information about common diseases and provide links to more in-depth resources for those conditions. Provision of this sort of information is often done with literature and usually with the physician walking the patient through it. For that sort of patient care, a hosted website can be a timesaver for the doctor. Asking a patient to "look it up on my website and call if you have questions" is a quick and easy way to end an office visit.
Care for Patients In Depth
You can find alternative contact information and phone numbers for off-hours or weekend care on a doctor's personal website. It can route calls to information nurses or other personnel on staff; providing a service that otherwise is simply another phone message for the doctor to return. For offices that have high volume on their phone lines, the ability to send appointment scheduling enquiries via email is a great perk. In the medical field, a hosted website dedicated to a single doctor or practice is more an introduction and information source than an advertising vehicle. If designed and utilized properly, a personal medical website can be an efficient and useful tool in the practice of medicine.
