Imagine going to a pharmacy with in-house clinic and utilizing a computer to get a nursing and medical visit. Rite Aid Pharmacy has begun providing this service called Now Clinic. A person can enter a private room, register and then answer a series of computer-prompted questions aimed at finding the patient’s problem or complaint. The patient can talk to a virtual nurse for no charge. If the person would rather talk to a physician or if the nurse recommends a consultation with a doctor, there’s a fee.
The services provided include treatment for allergy, bladder infection, cold and cough, seasonal flu, sinus infections, sore throats, viral infections, diarrhea, insomnia, fever, nausea, rash, and other relatively minor complaints.
These on-line virtual clinics offer convenience to patients. However, the experts wonder whether virtual medicine will be as accurate as in-person examinations with a person’s own physician. No doubt this is just the beginning of combining technology and medicine. The details may change. Some speculate that at-home access of these virtual clinics will become very popular. Watch this situation as it grows.
More information can be found at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2012/02/06/bil20206.htm
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