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Telehealth Visits on the Decline: Its Effect on Patient Scheduling

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Telehealth Visits on the Decline: Its Effect on Patient Scheduling

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Telehealth visits

During the pandemic, it seemed like telehealth visits comprised nearly 100% of provider encounters with patient. Since that time, the percentage of visits that took place virtually understandably dipped, and by 2022, most Medicare patients saw their providers in person, a new study indicates.

Check out three ways the reduction in telehealth visits may change the way you schedule patients at your practice.

1. Patients May Need More Time With the Provider

Your patients may need to see the provider for a longer visit during in-person encounters than they do during telehealth visits. One study found that patients saved a full hour of clinic time by scheduling telehealth visits rather than coming into the office. This means that if those patients are now headed to your practice to see the provider face to face, you’ll need to schedule longer visits, plan for more congestion in the waiting room, ensure that you have examination rooms available and allow for extra time in other areas, like the lab.

Your practice may spend extra time on the following tasks, among others, during in-person visits:

  • Performing examinations and taking vital signs
  • Handling preventive vaccinations
  • Evaluating additional issues that the provider notices, such as the patient limping, which wouldn’t be identified over telehealth

Make sure you perform a study of how long in-person visits typically last with your providers and schedule patients accordingly as your proportion of telehealth visits declines.

2. Schedule More Support Staff

Telehealth visits may not require you to have a receptionist greet the patient or a nurse taking vital signs, which means you’ve been scheduling your support team differently for telehealth than you would for in-person visits. But as these patients increasingly present for in-person visits, you’ll need to make sure you have the right staff members in place so your existing team members aren’t overwhelmed.

If you notice that nurses are backed up, patients are standing in your waiting room due to lack of seats, or you’ve got a long line at check-in or check-out, you could be scheduling staff too sparsely. Consider adding more team members to compensate for the influx of face-to-face visits if needed.

3. Expect No-Shows

You’ll need to plan for more no-shows at your office as the number of in-person appointments rise. One study found that no-shows were nearly five times more likely among patients scheduled for in-person appointments compared to those scheduled for telehealth.

One big reason for this is because patients may be missing reliable transportation to make it to your office. To ensure that you’re appropriately prepared for no-shows, ensure that you have every patient sign a no-show policy when they join your practice so you can collect no-show fees from them when needed. This can help cover the missed income you won’t receive when they fail to present for their appointments.

When you do see patients over telehealth, it’s important to ensure you bill for their visits appropriately to hang onto your deserved reimbursement. Let expert Maya Turner, CPC, CPMA, CPCO, CPC-I help during her online training, Prevent Top Telehealth Billing/Coding Errors to Boost 2024 Pay. Register today!


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