Healthcare practitioners concentrate on treating physical illnesses and forget the importance of emotional and mental wellness. But, according to a report released in 2020, many Americans are said to be socially isolated. The most affected population is the elderly. Due to social isolation and loneliness, they are at an increased risk for dementia and other chronic conditions. Thankfully, several studies have shown that telehealth can reduce feelings of loneliness while improving treatment outcomes. The rising number of patients has strained the medical system. To curb this, clinicians are using telemedicine to maximize resources and still offer quality healthcare to their patients. Today, we look at how telehealth can help treat loneliness and how to incorporate it into your practice.
What Are the Dangers of Loneliness?
Social isolation and loneliness don’t look deep at first. However, these have dire consequences on mental and physical well-being. The most affected population is the elderly whose loved ones have moved out or died. And according to CDC, social isolation and loneliness can lead to mental issues like dementia.
It can also lead to sleep problems, abdominal pain, headaches, and worsening of the current chronic symptoms. Besides these, lonely patients struggle with depression and cognitive decline. Worse is that loneliness can increase the mortality rate.
Interestingly, social isolation doesn’t just cause medical conditions. It also increases a person’s medical expenditure. A 2018 study by CMS revealed that they spent more money on senior citizens who were socially isolated compared to those who were active. They found that they spent approximately $6.7 billion more per year on such patients.
Additionally, the researchers found that these socially isolated individuals were more likely to enroll in a skilled nursing facility, which would up their expenditure further.
Now, although healthcare providers might benefit when patients spend more money on their services, such statistics are worrying and can impact the quality of care provided hugely. Thankfully, telehealth seems to have a solution for this.
Related article: Remote Patient Monitoring vs Telehealth
How Telehealth Helps Combat Social Isolation
Telehealth is a viable option to help deal with social isolation and loneliness. Practitioners can use it to help patients deal with negative thoughts and feelings resulting from loneliness and depression. Through this service, clinicians can provide their patients with the support they need to remain healthy when dealing with anxiety, isolation, and paranoia. Telemedicine can include a caregiver or another family member in the patient’s care plan. As a result, it can reduce feelings of isolation and loneliness.
Clinicians can engage socially with the vulnerable population, making them feel less lonely. As a result, it prevents a patient’s current medical condition from worsening.
A 2020 study conducted by Bohan Farrel evaluated the importance of telehealth visits. Researchers made senior patients in a living facility attend telehealth visits weekly. In the end, about 80% of the patients were less depressed, and 60% felt less lonely over three months as a result of these visits.
How to Implement Telehealth to Curb Loneliness?
Now that we have read about the effects of telehealth, you may be interested in integrating the program into your organization. So how do you go about it?
A good start will be remote patient monitoring. Both patients and healthcare providers can benefit from this service. Patients can enjoy social and physical benefits while the clinicians will be reimbursed for their services. Please remember the service must be 20 minutes per month for full reimbursement.
Remote patient monitoring programs involve using health coaches or health navigators for care delivery. These coaches have a session with patients where they connect with them to drive change in their behavior. As a result, it improves patient engagement and participation with their care plan while improving their social life, leading to better health outcomes.
Patients can discuss their emotional and social issues with the health coaches, who can connect them to nearby communities if need be. That way, they can be healthy both physically and mentally.
Some organizations have taken a different direction. A study conducted in May 2020 grouped patients in telehealth groups to reduce loneliness among older adults. These patients had scheduled zoom calls, various arts and crafts, physical training exercises, and narrative writing sessions. Guest speakers talked to them through video calls that replaced the previous face-to-face conversations that were affected by social distancing. Speakers and patients worked together to develop at-home care projects, which were also demonstrated to their caregivers. In the end, the researchers reported an increase in patient satisfaction and social interaction.
Related article: Telehealth Post Covid-19
Final Thoughts
The social components of care are essential, like the medical ones. But loneliness, especially among the elderly, remains a challenge. These days, social distancing has made it worse. Thankfully, clinicians can use telehealth to ensure patients feel less alone. Telehealth keeps patients on the right wellness track physically and mentally.
