HJNO Nov/Dec 2020

44 NOV / DEC 2020 I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS MEDICAL SOCIETY COLUMN MEDICAL SOCIETY Physicians & Patients Stay Connected Throughout the Pandemic QUARANTINE and social distance man- dates resulting from the COVID-19 pan- demic brought a unique challenge to the traditional physician-patient relationship in southeast Louisiana, enhancing the need for alternatives to the traditional in-person exam room consultation. As a result of this demand, medical profes- sionals and science have fast-tracked the use of advanced audio, visual and other electronic technology to communicate ef- fectively with patients. Healthcare experts and physician medical society members weighed in on the value of telemedicine throughout this crisis and going forward. “Telemedicine was a game changer in the COVID-19 healthcare crisis as opposed to previous crises such as Katrina in as much as we quickly transitioned to the telehealth format allowing our patients unfettered access to their providers, while providing our institution with an unin- terrupted revenue stream which kept up from shuttering clinics and doctors’ offic- es,” said Frank Wilklow MD, Touro Cardi- ology, CMO Crescent City Physicians, Inc., and Touro Cath Lab director. “Telehealth also addressed the unique risks associat- ed with COVID-19 and decreased risk of exposure to our providers and clinic staff. It decreased the burden on our system to provide personal protective equipment to our staff; allowing for valuable resources to be allocated to the hospital.” Mobile devices such as phones, tablets and laptops have allowed physicians to become more connected to their patients. For many in southeast Louisiana, tele- medicine has provided the only safe and Telemedicine gets fast-tracked to meet the healthcare needs of southeast Louisiana to aid with COVID-19 quarantine and social distance mandates.