In an interview, Tradock Health CEO Jason Gorevic shared how the company has changed, particularly since the start of the pandemic, from primary care services to support for hospitals and health systems.
How do you find enough providers to support your telehealth needs, given the shortage of doctors and paramedics we’re seeing in healthcare, exacerbated by Covid-19 fatigue?
At our core, Teladoc Health is dedicated to connecting people with healthcare in new ways. We are closing the gap for millions of people who may not be getting the care they need.
CEO Jason Gorevich
Teladoc Health Medical Group consists of more than 7,000 licensed care providers working through more than 100 virtual care clinical protocols to deliver evidence-based care at scale. Our clinicians respond daily to more than 100,000 patient messages via text and chat and provide more than 30,000 virtual visits.
Despite the shortage of doctors and paramedics, we have a waiting list of doctors who want to be involved with us. Many have been exhausted from traditional physical delivery models, especially in the wake of the pandemic, and have long been wearing personal protective equipment.
You developed a virtual nursing unit that you highlighted at the HIMSS meeting in March. Can you explain how it works because it’s focused on inpatient care, which seems to be a starting point for Teladoc Health?
Today – more than ever – hospitals and health systems are being forced to operate with reduced resources, significant financial challenges, staffing shortages and changing consumer expectations. Virtual care offers new strategies to meet the challenges of delivering in-person care.
An important part of our business provides technology and services to hospital systems so that they can provide virtual care to patient populations. Our inpatient solutions complement in-person care by expanding clinician coverage, streamlining patient triage to help reduce interventional treatments, and providing a positive clinician and patient experience.
The virtual nursing program you mentioned is implemented at St. Luke’s Health System in Kansas City, Missouri, and helps address nursing shortages by having virtual nurses support bedside nurses. Virtual nurses can assist with tasks such as non-in-person care, education, documentation, admissions, discharges, answering questions, and reviewing care plans or doctors rounding up with patients and their loved ones.
The unit increases St Luke’s bedside care response rates, increases patient and nurse satisfaction, reduces the burden on bedside nurses, and positively impacts quality and safety to improve the work environment.
About 10 years ago, telemedicine was thought to have a rather limited role—primarily a supportive role in primary care. What has changed before and after Covid-19 and some of the factors behind it?
I think pre-pandemic, a lot of people thought virtual care was a “secondary form” of care, limited to urgent or respite care, but once they hired a board-certified doctor on our platform and saw the quality of care, We have many converts.
I think we’ve also demonstrated over the past few years that virtual care is not just convenient care, it’s better care. There is a big difference between putting a doctor on a screen and providing holistic care. While demand has persisted, the pandemic has certainly intensified the need for virtual mental health care, chronic disease management, and virtual primary care, as it is an important driver of chronic disease, specialty and mental health care, and thus a key factor in outcomes.
In addition to having the broadest range of virtual healthcare services, consumers also expect a comprehensive level of care in these services. There is a growing desire and expectation to get the right care at the right time, whether it’s support from self-care experience, certified coaches or licensed clinicians.
your chief financial officer observed Mental health visits have been a big driver of telehealth. Can you provide some details about the mental health services offered by Teladoc Health, including the development of your BetterHelp brand?
Mental health demand and utilization have grown dramatically since the onset of the pandemic, paving the way for new mental health consumers—supported by virtual-first and digital channels.
Last year, we launched myStrength Complete, an integrated mental health service that provides consumers with personalized, targeted care in a single, comprehensive experience. The launch comes as more than half of people with mental health issues report they don’t know where to start when they’re in therapy, underscoring the importance of the digital front door that myStrength Complete will provide.
myStrength Complete’s proprietary stepped care model seamlessly integrates app-based tools and coaching expertise with Teladoc’s licensed therapists and psychiatrists to ensure consumers get what they need, when they need it, in a unified experience Health support and level of care.
Employers in particular understand that mental health care is a core benefit that employees want and need. myStrength Complete provides clinically based care that is cost effective, easy to use and effective, and a stepped approach makes it suitable for the entire population. In addition to clear employee and consumer needs, the right care increases employee productivity and overall well-being.
BetterHelp is the largest direct-to-consumer provider of mental health services and an integral part of our company, serving an important societal need for consumers who do not have mental health insurance or who cannot find a therapist in their network of health plans.
In February, Teladoc Health launched Chronic Care Complete. Can you provide an overview of the program?
Chronic Care Complete is a powerful and differentiated combination of our strengths.It combines connected technology, data science and virtual care capabilities with expert coaches and physician supervision to deliver a comprehensive, integrated experience that simplifies chronic disease Condition management and improved clinical outcomes. The program offers complete solutions through connected devices, personalized health signals, expert guided support, physician-based care, and comprehensive mental health care.
Offering comprehensive support for patients with prediabetes, diabetes, hypertension, weight management and mental health issues, the program is uniquely designed to help and guide members through every step of their healthcare journey, from initial diagnosis to mental health support to cope A potentially life-changing diagnosis.
You also package a suite of services for large employers under Primary360. Can you give an overview of what’s included?
As healthcare costs continue to rise, health plans and employers have increased their focus on innovative solutions to manage costs and reduce overall spending. Primary care is widely accepted as a valuable model of care that helps control rising costs. Those who participate in primary care identify their health problems earlier and more effectively, have better medication adherence, enjoy better chronic disease management, and ultimately have better health outcomes.
Primary360 (P360) reimagines primary care by understanding their needs over time and proactively and seamlessly guiding members to the right care, whether urgent needs, specialty care, health visits or otherwise. P360 provides primary care through ongoing relationships with dedicated primary care physicians and care teams, where members benefit from virtual access 24/7 for urgent care, prevention, screening, and ongoing condition management, a convenient and highly personalized experience .
As I mentioned, primary care is an important driver of chronic, specialty, and mental health care use, and thus a key factor in outcomes. As a result, the P360 is optimized to serve as the hub for Teladoc Health’s broader suite of specialty care, chronic care, mental health and complex care products. The result is better access to convenient, tailored healthcare that increases member satisfaction while delivering better outcomes and lower overall costs for our clients.
What trends will affect employer benefits over the next 12 months?
Providing benefits to a workforce of any size can be a challenge for employers. Every employee is unique, as are their healthcare needs and preferences. Virtual care has undoubtedly emerged as the solution to this dilemma, but employers need to ensure their virtual care strategies are scalable to meet the needs of each employee.
First, employers need an integrated platform across the continuum to enable whole-person virtual care.A platform that addresses chronic care, mental health, primary care, and acute, complex and specialty care virtual first approach.
As mentioned earlier, in addition to having the broadest range of virtual medical services, employees also expect a comprehensive level of care in these services. Employers need to consider whether existing solutions are both personalised and able to meet all levels of acuity for each individual’s healthcare needs. A stepped care model will define a clear path for optimal care and drive engagement. These services can be scaled up or down to ensure members receive the right level of care at the right time.
Finally, the shift to virtual-first will continue, and I think by early 2023, virtual-first health plans will become commonplace. Embedded in a virtual-first health plan, virtual primary care also provides an alternative for employers looking to improve outcomes, drive member engagement and reduce costs. The Virtual First Health Plan has created a benefit design optimized for members who prefer virtual front door care. Benefit design focused on virtual care solutions will play a central role in meeting member needs and improving the quality of primary care.
With a focus on health equity, rural communities have struggled with WiFi access. How much of a hindrance does this pose to Teladoc Health?
With virtual care, we are ready to take care of everyone. We are committed to expanding access to healthcare and eliminating persistent disparities because we believe virtual healthcare has the power to be a “great equalizer” in healthcare.
We’ve long been expanding access to care through phone, online, cellular remote monitoring, and now through voice-enabled devices that work with Alexa. We’ve been very aggressive in trying to bridge the digital divide, while making sure consumers have access to non-digital options as well, especially non-video options in low-bandwidth areas. Additionally, our virtual options and providers with multiple state licenses continue to provide care to medical deserts in urban and rural America.
While we all need to do more to bridge the perennial gaps in society, we are innovating and creating more choices for consumers to help close the gap.
Is the rapidly expanding scale of telemedicine in the health system in response to the pandemic creating more opportunities for businesses like yours, or are you seeing a more competitive landscape? Does your market outlook include more consolidation? Or more of a niche player focused on a specific healthcare sector?
The reality is that people are participating in part of what we do, and there are many different problems in the healthcare ecosystem that need to be addressed. This has created a wave of point solutions designed to address very specific problems rather than whole-person care.
Unfortunately, today’s patients face cognitive overload as they switch back and forth between providers, specialists, labs and apps. These people need their care teams and data to be centralized and accessible.
No one else can virtually enable and deliver a full range of connected healthcare on a global scale — and use the resulting treasure trove of data to improve healthcare.
What’s on your to-do list in 2022?
Another year has passed, and our mission and vision remain the same: to empower all people, everywhere, to live their healthiest lives by transforming the healthcare experience. Everyone deserves access to the best healthcare anywhere in the world on their own terms, and we will continue to deliver on our mission by providing whole-person virtual care including primary care, mental health, chronic disease management, and more.
photo: elenabs, Getty Images
