Home visits by doctors go back to the origins of medicine. This practice was nearly obsolete by the end of the 20th century but has been coming back into fashion. Today, many doctors and other clinical staff perform traditional house calls to treat patients in the comfort of their homes.
Today’s house-call physician uses modern technology to make home visits far less expensive than, say, a trip to the local emergency room (ER) or hospital. Keep reading to discover some of the most impressive benefits of house calls.
Benefits of In-Home Doctor Visits
House calls can improve your health in the following ways:
Provides More Personalized Care
Unlike traditional visits to a clinic or hospital, medical visits at home improve the patient-doctor experience. The doctor can spend more time with the patient and deliver custom treatment. Home visits are often patient-centric and less rushed, giving the physician a better chance to discuss and assess a patient’s symptoms, perform a thorough checkup, and establish a treatment plan if required.
This high-touch approach to medical care proves highly effective in improving patient outcomes. In-home doctors may also include a combination of services to provide more comprehensive medical care. This makes it easier to provide better continuity of care for patients who might not otherwise have access to reliable or regular healthcare services.
Saves Time and Money
Many patients with chronic illnesses can’t drive and worry about transportation to and from physician’s offices. House calls provide financial relief through fewer hospitalizations and better care for families and patients. They save transportation costs — especially for those with chronic conditions that may require multiple doctor visits.
Besides cost, patients with conditions such as arthritis may find moving difficult. Those with equipment such as oxygen tanks can struggle to carry everything with them, requiring their families to arrange for time off to drive them to and from the hospital.
The most significant benefit of house calls to patients and families is that a house call physician offers well-coordinated care that improves the patient’s quality of life.
Keeps Elderly Patients Out of Hospitals and Urgent Care
As healthcare improvements continue to extend life expectancy rates, the elderly population increases steadily. As they continue aging, these older patients spend more and more time in the medical care facilities and hospitals treating chronic diseases like heart disease, stroke, and cancer.
Even adults who can still make a trip to their doctor’s office may put off visiting their primary care physician because it’s simply too much of an ordeal. As a result, their conditions worsen, and treatment becomes more expensive and complicated.
House calls allow physicians to provide elderly patients and those with disabilities and chronic conditions with quality in-home medical treatment. This helps older and more vulnerable patients avoid having to travel to urgent care facilities and hospitals while still being able to see a doctor for quick, professional, and efficient treatment.
Reduces Patient No-Shows
Patient no-shows have always been a concern for the entire healthcare industry. Many patients report missing their appointments because they simply forgot, didn’t know about the appointment, or hadn’t received reminder texts or calls.
Your doctor can help determine and detect certain diseases and give you disease prevention information. However, busy schedules might interfere with the frequency of scheduling doctor visits. Nonetheless, regularly seeing your doctor or physician helps you achieve optimal health and well-being.
Most patients likely to miss a doctor’s appointment are those for whom traveling to a medical appointment is a significant psychological or physical burden. Another reason? Patients don’t feel bonded to their healthcare practitioners or teams.
That’s where in-house calls come in. Patients don’t have to travel to the doctors’ offices. Medical visits at home also allow physicians to connect with patients and make every interaction truly meaningful and personal.
Prevents Exposure to Germs
In-home doctor visits can help prevent the spread of illness, especially in today’s post-pandemic period. Since a house call physician can treat those sick with something contagious at home, that lowers the likelihood of spreading infection. Similarly, patients can avoid spending time in crowded waiting rooms potentially exposed to viruses and bacteria.
Improves Patient Safety
A house call physician has the chance to check in on a patient and learn whether they’re taking their medication as prescribed, eating well, and safe from risks of falls or accidents. By visiting a patient in their home, the physician can provide a unique perfective on a patient’s life that may prove challenging during hospitalization or in an office.
This can foster the physician-patient relationship and enhance the doctor’s understanding of the patient’s environment and support systems.
Telemedicine
Technological improvements come with many benefits for healthcare as well. Technology provides direct access to medical professionals from the comfort of home via phone, computer, or other devices. Similarly, technology brings about more compact and affordable versions of typical diagnostic and treatment devices.
The next time you need a medical exam, reach out for your phone rather than your keys. If you have a loved one recovering from a hospital stay, you can have the nurses or primary care physician visit their home instead of checking them into a rehabilitation facility or nursing home.
Medical House Call Services
Medical house calls offer several benefits, including convenience, cost savings, patient safety, additional independence for seniors, personalized care, and an effortless medical experience overall.
As the population ages and views on healthcare change, physicians will increasingly need to choose between seeing patients in their family homes, nursing homes, or assisted living centers or transferring them to doctors who will. It’s an old idea making new waves across the global healthcare system.
Need a quick medical appointment with a house call physician? Get urgent care delivered in the comfort of your own home by our team at Poipu Mobile MD Clinic. We also offer walk-ins and online bookings for urgent care services. Call or text us today at 808-652-7021 to learn more about us.
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