While telemedicine has become an increasingly popular means of managing rural patients and the elderly, it is, in my opinion, a second-rate form of medical care. Though it may be helpful in the areas of preventive care and health maintenance, it cannot replace in-person evaluation in the assessment of symptomatic patients. Medicine is an art as well as a science and its practice is complex; subtle clues to the presence of serious disease may be missed if a patient is denied examination by a trained healthcare professional.
Beyond the current pandemic, our country and many others face health crises resulting from uneven access, excessive costs and provider shortages. Telemedicine may have a role to play in addressing the problem but universal access to quality, affordable, in-person healthcare is far more important.
