This story is part of a collaboration between Central Connecticut State University and University of Central Lancashire.
John Lee, a university student in Wuhan, China, has been helping his grandparent order prescription drugs to treat his diabetes and hypertension online, and access telemedicine during the pandemic lockdown.
“As the situation is getting better here, many of the hospitals have delivered online diagnostics, and it is quick- easy to get in touch with the doctor online,” Lee said.
Kate Rotchford, of Windsor, Connecticut, has begun to see her liver doctor via telemedicine but is not feeling confidence in the quality of care for the long run.
“I prefer seeing the doctor in person rather than via telemedicine,” Rotchford said. “I am concerned that telemedicine is not viable in long term for my medical needs.”
Rotchford said the doctor’s office encountered complications connecting to her via Zoom.
“The doctor’s office had difficulty connecting with My-Chart & Zoom, the appointment encountered electronic glitches,” Rotchford said.
The United States and China have taken on the telemedicine transition in different ways. But the most significant test for these countries is rapidly coming. According to a recent article from the American Medical Association, doctors are encouraged to continue increasing telemedicine care in the coming months.
“With a growing need for health systems and physician practices to increase outreach, Dr. Kirley shares some tips for scaling chronic disease care during COVID-19,” according to the AMA website. “One way to reach patients with chronic diseases is to leverage telehealth resources…now is the time for physicians to continue to provide helpful tips for what patients can do at home to manage their hypertension, type 2 diabetes, obesity and other chronic diseases.”
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Many citizens in the U.S. must pick up their prescriptions at drive-thru pharmacies, which can be risky when thinking about possible exposure to the coronavirus. Some patients in China who are looking to refill their prescriptions rely on an app called “the Ding Dang Medicine delivery app.”
“It took five days for the prescriptions to arrive at Wuhan, as the majority of the delivery companies have stopped sending packages,” Lee said. “But normally it will arrive at your home in a much shorter period. The Ding Dang Medicine delivery app usually only takes twenty eight minutes to arrive if the local shop has a supply, but at that moment, many of the local shops have closed due to the lockdown.”
An express delivery driver working for SF Holding in Wuhan, China says there has been a considerable increase in demand for prescription delivery.
“There was a huge increase for home delivery of medication products during isolation,” the driver said. “And we are the only private delivery company during the quarantine, so it is busy.” The driver asked to remain anonymous due to his employer’s policies against speaking to the press.
The American telemedicine and prescription service differs from the one Lee has experienced.
Greg Stackhouse, a front-line factory worker in Springfield, Massachusetts, tried to get telemedicine treatment through a specific website but said he was given the runaround.
“I filled out an online form for them to contact me about treatment. They called me back three days later to register me over a telephone interview about my mental health history,” Stackhouse said. “I was then told that my answers would be reviewed by a case manager and if deemed that I am a good candidate for treatment, a therapist would call me back to set up a telemedicine appointment. That was three days ago, and I still have not received a response.”
Telemedicine and prescription demand will intensify in the U.S. and China as residents continue to stay insulated in their homes, even as the virus gradually recedes. But will the quality of care suffer during an extended period?
Josh Cohen, a certified family therapist who works in West Hartford, Connecticut, says that while telemedicine is an extremely useful tool during these times of quarantine, in the long-run telemedicine is lacking.
“The fact that people can connect with a mental health provider while being isolated has been an especially useful thing for the clients,” Cohen said. “However, even with an understanding of this being the only available medium and it being taken seriously, it still seems like telehealth is lacking.”
Christina Huang from the University of Central Lancashire contributed interviews from China.