What You Need to Know About Telehealth at GBMC

You’ve probably been hearing a lot about telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic, but at GBMC, providing patient care by phone or video visit is nothing new. Robin Motter-Mast, DO, GBMC’s Chief of Staff, talked with Fox 45’s Brandi Proctor about how telehealth works, how it has helped patients get the care they need safely during the pandemic, and why you shouldn’t postpone getting care, especially if you’re living with a chronic condition like high blood pressure or diabetes.

“At GBMC, we had been working on our telehealth services for more than a year when COVID-19 hit,” said Dr. Motter-Mast. “Thanks to the hard work of our wonderful team, we’ve been able to offer primary care and specialty care services to our patients through a variety of systems, including MyChart, FaceTime, Skype, and more. No matter what type of technology you have, you can take part in a telehealth visit. Just because there’s a pandemic, it doesn’t mean people don’t need medical care for other health issues, so it was important that we provide a safe way for them to get that care.”

Dr. Motter-Mast also shared how GBMC is safely re-opening physician’s offices that had closed or limited services at the beginning of the pandemic by reducing the number of patients in the waiting room, doing more frequent cleaning and disinfecting, putting up plexiglass shields, and practicing social distancing.

In addition to protecting patients from potential exposure to COVID-19, telehealth also makes it easier for patients who don’t have transportation to see their doctor. It saves patients time, since they don’t have to make a trip to the office to consult with their physician.

“We plan to continue to offer telehealth options and are working with insurance companies to ensure they provide coverage for this care,” she added. “Of course, there are still times when you’ll need to see your doctor in person and some patients and physicians prefer in-person care, but we’ve been able to offer a wide range of services from primary care to GYN and oncology via telehealth, so it expands the way our patients can receive the care they need.”