Online myofunctional therapy works so well! I’m currently working with patients from over a dozen different countries. It doesn’t matter what timezone you’re in, I can coordinate our appointments to suit us both so you can get the myofunctional therapy program you need from the comfort of your own home.
What Is Telehealth And How Can It Help You?
Telehealth is a term you might not have heard, but rest assured, you’ll be hearing it a lot in the next few years.
Wikipedia defines Telehealth as “… the delivery of health-related services and information via telecommunications technologies. Telehealth could be as simple as two health professionals discussing a case over the telephone or as sophisticated as doing robotic surgery between facilities at different ends of the globe”.
Basically, the kind of Telehealth we’re talking about here involves a doctor or health practitioner seeing their patients via a videoconferencing service, instead of having to meet in an office. It only applies to certain fields though – it would be impossible for a dentist to see his patients over Skype for example, but it works beautifully for many other fields, including myofunctional therapy.
Online Myofunctional Therapy
I’m proud to be a pioneer in bringing Telehealth and online myofunctional therapy to my practice. I started seeing my patients using videoconferencing over four years ago, and the online part of my practice has grown steadily since then. Funnily enough, I wasn’t the one who wanted to go online. More and more of my Seattle-based patients were asking me if there was any way I could see them online so they didn’t have to drive through the heavy afternoon traffic. For some of them, a 30-minute appointment with me turned out to be more like two hours from the time they left till they made it back home.
Once I started seeing some patients this way, the demand grew and grew. As more of my practice moved online, I was able to close down one of my offices and consolidate down to my main location in West Seattle. Being able to see patients online changed my practice because it allowed me to start seeing patients from other parts of the state, and then the country, and then the rest of the world.
Is Telehealth An Effective Way To Treat Patients?
Needless to say, the reason online myofunctional therapy has become such a big part of my practice is because it works.
If there had been problems back in the early days, or if I’d felt that it was impacting the level of care I was able to give, then I’d never have adopted it at all.
But what actually happened was that in most cases, Telehealth proved to be the superior option. Patients were more relaxed when we met online compared to when they had to fight traffic to get to my office. This applied to both adults and children. The kids definitely got the hang of the video meetings very easily, usually even faster than my adult patients – after all, technology comes effortlessly to the younger generation, and they loved being able to get their appointments done so quickly and easily from the comfort of their home.
I’ve noticed some other interesting benefits to Telehealth. I can see patients at hours that are more suitable to them because they don’t have to drive or be away from their family. And my patients are more consistent with their appointments because a situation such as having a sick kid at home doesn’t mean they have to reschedule. This translates into better overall results, and treatment goals that are met as planned.
Telehealth Is Here To Stay
I believe that in time, Telehealth will become as mainstream as driving to a doctor’s office. The healthcare system is already gearing up to meet the demand. Insurance companies are working with providers to make it all as seamless as possible. I’ve seen a difference in my own practice as Internet speeds have gotten faster, and connections more stable, making the process even smoother.
I’ve designed every aspect of my practice around online myofunctional therapy. So everything from signing documents and evaluating symptoms in the initial consultation, to the way I teach exercises and how I guide patients through their program is customized to suit.
After years of experience, and hundreds of satisfied patients, I have no hesitation in recommending video-based myofunctional therapy. I expect to have the demand for this service increase dramatically over the next year and into the future.
I absolutely believe that we’re entering a new age of medical care, and that we need to embrace modern technologies to improve health care and make the outcomes for patients even better.
How Do I Set Up An Appointment?
To find out more about my practice, or to book an evaluation, click here for my contact form. I’m looking forward to hearing from you.
