Telemedicine Guide: Types, Cost & Examples Explained

Posted in Telemedicine

Telemedicine refers to using technology like video conferencing, mobile apps, remote monitoring devices, wearable health trackers, and AI-powered chatbots to improve the quality and reach of healthcare services in remote areas for those who cannot be physically present. As per a study by the American Medical Association, 85% of physicians indicated that telehealth increased the timeliness of care. Telemedicine began as a way to bring quality care to people in underserved or remote areas; however, after the COVID-19 pandemic, the dynamics shifted. 

Telemedicine app development services offer a solution incorporating features like video conferencing and remote monitoring tools for virtual consultations (diagnosis, treatment, patient queries, etc.) Video calls allow patients and healthcare providers to connect in real-time, regardless of the physical location. This technology bridges the gap between quality healthcare and patients who live in far-fetched areas or have mobility issues. Let’s get into more detail about types of telemedicine, costs, and examples.

What are Three Different Types of Telemedicine? 

While there are various types of telemedicine, the three major categories include:

1. Synchronous or Real-time interactive services
2. Asynchronous or Store and forward telemedicine
3. Remote monitoring

1. Synchronous or Real-Time Interactive Services

This type of telemedicine app, among the three, is self-explanatory. It enables patients and doctors to connect in real-time, one on one. Patients get direct access to doctors for consultations. Here, patients can discuss their concerns and explain their condition directly to the doctors. The approach uses specific HIPAA-compliant video conferencing software that ensures the security and confidentiality of patients’ data.

Synchronous or real-time interactive telemedicine services are majorly used for primary care consultations, mental health therapies, follow-up appointments, and even chronic disease management. This methodology eliminates the need for unnecessary hospital visits, saving time and reducing healthcare costs for patients and providers alike. Integrating high-definition video, secure chat, and remote diagnostic tools, these platforms accentuate the doctor-patient experience.

2. Asynchronous or Store and Forward Telemedicine

This type is also known as “asynchronous telemedicine,” where the data transmission and consultation are not done in real time. Store and forward types of telemedicine work similar to e-mails. The patients share their medical information, such as lab reports, x-rays, etc., with the healthcare providers, who subsequently provide vital information to specialist consultants in another location to be seen later. Telemedicine platforms come with built-in security features and are HIPAA-compliant to ensure the confidentiality of patients’ records.

Store and forward telemedicine make it easier for patients and healthcare providers to interact and collaborate remotely by allowing easy and secure data-sharing features. The approach enables patients to access the best specialists for their treatment, even when they are located in different geographical locations. The approach is widely practiced in the fields of radiology, dermatology, ophthalmology, etc.

3. Remote Patient Monitoring

Remote monitoring is yet another popular option among all types of telemedicine. It enables patients to self-monitor their health using various technological devices. These gadgets can measure and save vital signs to be used when needed and are popular with patients dealing with chronic diseases like: 

• Diabetes
• Asthma
• Cardiovascular diseases

Such patients need regular monitoring of their vitals. With advanced telemedicine types like RPM, patients can record, monitor, and share important data with healthcare providers when required. Not only is remote monitoring a much more affordable way to manage chronic diseases, but it’s also much more reliable and improves the quality of healthcare services for patients.

Remote monitoring tools, such as wearable devices and medical sensors, enable patients to collect vital health data and transmit it to healthcare providers for analysis. This can help identify and address their medical concerns early, reducing the need for in-person visits. Together, video conferencing and remote monitoring tools form the foundation of telemedicine, providing accessible and convenient healthcare services to patients worldwide.

Telehealth Types and Use Cases

What Are The Benefits of Telemedicine?

All types of telemedicine are powered and driven by digital technologies. Their rise has opened up a whole new set of opportunities for healthcare providers and patients to redefine the traditional ways of interacting with one another.

Some common advantages of all telemedicine types: 

1. Improves Patient Engagement 

An increasing inclination of the market trend toward ROI has forced the healthcare industry to redefine patient-provider interaction models. Today, medical care receivers are looking for personalized, remotely accessible, and value-based options that enable them to interact with clinics and doctors without visiting physically. 

Telemedicine, with its features like video consultation and messaging, cuts down on costs related to hospital visits and the time to schedule an appointment with doctors. Healthcare services are incorporating digital technologies to help patients connect with their doctors and physicians remotely, keeping them in the loop throughout their treatment journey.

2. Makes Healthcare Services Reachable to More Patients

There is an increasing global gap between the number of patients and the required qualified doctors/physicians. The situation in rural and remote areas is even grimmer with few (if any) qualified healthcare practitioners available to the people. Telemedicine tends to relieve patients by increasing the accessibility of healthcare practitioners remotely. 

3. Increases Practice Efficiency

Different types of telemedicine technology fine-tune healthcare workflow efficiency. It optimizes the administrative processes for healthcare institutions, enabling them to increase their efficiency and the quality of services delivered to patients.

4. Increases Practice Revenue

From healthcare practitioners’ and institutions’ viewpoints, different types of telehealth services help them improve their service quality and increase their revenue and profitability with reduced costs.  The technology enables remote patient communication, which helps them expand the number of patients they can provide care to and cuts down patient interaction time on-site. Telehealth gives healthcare professionals the competitive advantage to acquire, treat, and retain more patients.

5. Reduced Patient Costs

Telemedicine isn’t just beneficial for doctors and hospitals; patients also get many advantages from this technology. Virtual consultations in the comfort of homes, eliminating traveling, parking, or childcare significantly reduce costs. This healthcare model is not just more accessible but much more affordable for patients. 

This no-travel medical care model serves well for rural patients from remote areas who otherwise have to move overnight to access qualified healthcare specialists. According to the Oregon Health and Science University, the implementation of telemedicine into their workflow and process helps their patients to cut over USD 6 million in travel costs alone.

Do you know how to develop a Telemedicine app?

What Are the Telemedicine Examples For Healthcare Sector?

Healthcare institutions are implementing many examples of telemedicine services to ensure the accessibility of quality patient care. Below are the five best telehealth applications examples in the healthcare sector.

1) Diabetes and Medication Video Education Support at the Medical Center at Bowling Green

Kentucky has one of the highest rates of diabetic patients in the United States. According to some estimates, over 12.9% of adults are affected, with over 12% being prediabetic. 

In the last two decades, the rate of diabetes has increased, making it one of the most common chronic conditions. It is also one of the most expensive chronic illnesses.

The study conducted by the University of Georgia reports that diabetes costs around 412 billion USD annually, including medical and indirect costs like loss of productivity. Diabetes further increases the chances of other medical complications like stroke, kidney failure, heart disease, and others, adding to the overall cost of treatment.

Managing Diabetes 

The Medical Center at Bowling Green identified lifestyle management as a key supportive element to suppress the rate of diabetes in the state. The medical center initiated video education to raise awareness about ways to stay healthy and a standardized approach to managing diabetes. This video education was aimed to aid the clinic-led instructions for diabetic patients and improve the awareness of the disease amongst the population.

They even implemented the “SmarTigr” interactive patient engagement TV system. It was introduced in 2017 and has proven to be an efficient and effective example of telemedicine for hospitals and healthcare facilities. The smarter TV system includes a robust library of videos and training to improve staff education and efficiency in dealing with diabetic patients.

The system has consistently seen a rise in the number of videos watched monthly. One recent study also indicates a qualitative improvement in patients, where over half of diabetes patients participated in the initiative, expressing their commitment to improving their lifestyle for better disease management.

2) Dealing with the Opioid Crisis with CoxHealth

The opioid crisis in the United States has had a serious impact on both public health and the economy. Lost economic output due to opioid-related deaths was between 221 billion USD and 431 billion USD stated in 2017. Healthcare institutions have suffered from extended hospital stays, lower patient satisfaction, and increased readmissions directly attributable to opioid-related issues.

Other than that, the opioid crisis has caused a significant loss of human life. One of the primary factors has been a lack of understanding among patients, unrealistic expectations, and ineffective communication with healthcare providers. 

Challenges Faced By The Healthcare System

Healthcare practitioners, including the paramedic staff, face barriers in dealing with the patient’s pain since they lack the resources, guidance, and information on the expected behaviors. To deal with this situation, CoxHealth in Springfield, MO, brought together a task force to raise awareness about pain and opioids. The team included: 

• Physicians
• Nurses
• Pharmacists
• Patient experience specialists
• Administration and staff educators

The task force used video education as a means to raise awareness amongst patients and healthcare practitioners about the experiences involved in opioid treatment. 

They educated people with written material that included general information about pain, pharmacological therapies for pain management, and non-pharmacological aspects of treatment. Other than that, it also included reporting pain and disposal of opioids. The Tiger system stored videos and other resources that were then available to patients and healthcare practitioners.

Immediate qualitative and quantitative improvement was reported amongst patients and healthcare practitioners post-implementation of the system. It was noted that the awareness program enabled over 80% of patients to discuss pain with their healthcare providers in more detail.

3) Welcome Video and SmarTigr to improve Patients’ Admission Process

Hospital environments can be confusing and even frightening for patients unfamiliar with modern healthcare facilities. It is commonly noted that the majority of patients and families are totally unaware of the admission procedures or what to expect for a multiple-day stay at the hospital. 

Since the admission process is the starting point of inpatient services, a confusing experience at this stage results in dissatisfaction or a negative perception of patients about the healthcare services.

“The SmarTigr” system was implemented by the Charleston Area Medical Center in Charleston, WV; the Service Excellence Innovation Team at the CAMC implemented the “Warm Welcome” initiative. This was a short 5-minute welcome video that started with the greeting message by the CEO while also helping patients understand the expected experience for a typical hospital stay.

The implementation of the system witnessed the reduction in time required for admission from 45 minutes to under 15 minutes, improved diagnosis and medication education, and increased whiteboard completion. Also, it improved the patient’s satisfaction with the hospital services.

4) Retail Pharmacy System at Morristown Medical Center

The rising uncertainty about hospital reimbursements and healthcare reforms resulted in an increasing number of programs directed to educate patients about their medication needs, as well as lowering their cost of readmissions. 

Patients who are unsatisfied with the quality or amount of education received from hospitals for medication have an overall lower HCAHPS score for the country. It is also one of the most common reasons driving up hospital readmissions. Under these circumstances, hospitals have been looking for alternative ways to improve the patient’s awareness and education about the medications, enhance clinical efficiencies, and increase revenue generation.

One of the successful examples of telehealth is Morristown Medical Center’s use of SmarTigr interactive patient engagement system. It helped educate patients about their medications, improve their communication channels, and raise awareness among patients for their retail pharmacy services.

The hospital created a “Retail Pharmacy” option in its SmarTigr system to enable patients to access various information pages. This included:

• The expectations for service levels
• Assistance with prescription fulfillment
• Discharge medications

The system allowed patients to either self-pick the medications or have them delivered to their bedside, which can be done through a few simple click-based requests. It also included medication information to raise awareness amongst patients through short two- to three-minute videos detailing the medication’s impacts and side effects.

The “Retail Pharmacy” initiative has proven to be a great success for Morristown. The system has enabled patients and their families to access the pharmacy pages and know details about the services offered by the hospital’s pharmacy. 

5) CHF Education Plan at Charleston Area Medical Center

West Virginia has the highest rates of cardiovascular disease in the United States, with heart attack as the leading cause of death amongst adults. On the other hand, congestive heart failure (CHF) stands tall as the number one reason for patients’ 30-day readmission to the hospital.  

Charleston Area Medical Center (CAMC) already has an intensive approach in place to lessen readmissions due to CHF or other chronic diseases. However, to increase work efficiency, CAMC implemented the telemedicine service – SmarTigr across all its hospital campuses. This interactive patient engagement system is meant to improve patient education and create awareness about chronic conditions like congestive heart failure (CHF).

After implementing SmarTigr, CAMC observed a sharp decrease in the readmission rate for heart failure patients. Additionally, it also improved the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) scores.

Forecasting Telemedicine Users Across The USA (2021-2025)

5 Best Telemedicine Examples for Patients

Moving on from telemedicine examples for hospitals, clinics, and healthcare institutions, let’s look at some of the examples of telehealth technology to see how they enable patients to access high-quality healthcare services.

1) Increasing the Life Expectancy of Inuit People

Inuit people, who are indigenous people of Canada, have a shorter life expectancy than the national average. Many socio-economic factors contribute to shorter life expectancy; however, the lack of quality health care due to geographical remoteness has proven to be a major reason. Generally, the remote northern communities in Canada primarily rely on nurses for healthcare services, with occasional visits of qualified physicians in the regional health centers. This arrangement is due to the lack of transportation in those far-fetched areas, making it harder for quick and timely access to qualified medical care.

One of the successful examples of telemedicine implemented in the region by Eichhorn is InTouch Health. It relies on technology to provide quick access to qualified physicians and doctors for Intuit people in the Arctic. 

Telemedicine has proven to be life-changing for the Intuit People living in the vast northern wilderness of Canada, allowing them to get qualified healthcare services even in the remotest places.

2) Telemedicine as an Alternative to Dog Sleds

Alaska, United States, faces the same problems as northern Canada, with vast frozen wilderness and a small dispersed population, limiting healthcare network. Many small villages in the interiors of Alaska don’t even have access to qualified nurses, and in any case of a medical emergency, the patient has to be taken to the hospital on a sled, which could take from hours to days and even weeks.

The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium has remained one of the prime telehealth examples for over two decades. The program enables telemedicine consultations for remote communities with qualified doctors and physicians sitting in urban centers.

3) Telemedicine Instead of Boats in Vanuatu

Vanuatu is a small island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. Any medical emergency on the island means that the patient has to be carried by boat to the main healthcare facility, which can take anywhere from about 4 to 6 hours.

The arrival of broadband internet opened the opportunity for telemedicine to make up for the lack of healthcare services on the island. Today, the government is supporting a network of doctors and physicians to connect remotely with the patients living on the island. The program also aims to build the capacity of local nurses by giving them learning opportunities through telemedicine consultations.

4) Telemedicine for the Havasupai Tribe

The Havasupai Tribe is one of the most remote tribes in the United States, and it lives at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. This extremely isolated location of the tribe is only accessible on horseback, by helicopter, or on an 8-mile hike. To make it even worse, the nearest town to the tribe is over 60 miles away. Presently, there are 367 people of the Havasupai Tribe living in their tribal land, which makes it necessary to offer them efficient healthcare services. 

The tribe has recently secured a 30MB internet connection to support education and telemedicine services, which will greatly help in providing the indigenous people of the United States with much-needed qualified healthcare services.

5) Handling Medical Emergencies on Ships

According to one study, one in five commercial ships is forced to change routes due to medical emergencies, which cost the sector a whopping $168 million annually. According to the same study, by implementing telemedicine equipment onboard, crew members won’t just add to the safety of the passengers but also save on many costs that are wasted due to route diversions on commercial ships.

Folio3 Digital Health and ClinicLive – Telemedicine App Example

ClinicLive is one of the best examples of telemedicine, and it is meant to connect healthcare practitioners with remote patients seamlessly and in a cost-effective way. The software is designed to enable hospitals and practitioners to get easy access and branding options for their practice, which also includes various powerful features and tools for patients.

What are the Three Different Features of Cliniclive?

As one of the leading HIPAA-compliant telemedicine software developed by Folio3 Digital Health, these features and functions improve the quality of healthcare services, including:

1. Highly Customizable

• Create your customized brand
• HIPPA Compliant and secure
• Reduce patient’s waiting time

2. Powerful Patient App

• HD-quality video conferencing
• Flexible appointment schedule
• Secure video conferencing with doctors and healthcare practitioners

3. Extensive Practice Portal

• Secure and reliable
• User-friendly and intuitive interface
• Detailed and interactive reporting

Customize Telehealth Applications with Folio3 Digital Health

Telemedicine app development is a good growth opportunity for medical practices to expand their services. Telehealth offers convenient consultations online, decreasing wait time and enhancing patient care. Join hands with Folio3 Digital Health and start your telemedicine application development journey with us today.

Conclusion

The American Telemedicine Association (ATA) states that telehealth includes all two-way communication tools and apps, such as wireless devices, smartphones, and other telecommunication channels. Telemedicine enhances healthcare by enabling virtual consultations, remote monitoring, and telepharmacy solutions, making medical services more accessible to those who cannot attend in-person visits or live in remote areas. Its convenience and accessibility make it a widely accepted solution, bridging gaps in healthcare and ensuring patients receive timely, quality care regardless of location.

Frequently Asked Questions 

What are Three Different Types of Telemedicine?

The three major types of telemedicine include:

1. Store-and-Forward Telemedicine
2. Remote Monitoring
3. Real-Time Interactive Services

Is HIPAA Compliance Necessary for Telemedicine?

Yes. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is a United States Legislation related to the data privacy and security of medical information. It minimizes fraud and abuse in the healthcare industry by standardizing electronic records storage and processing. It is recommended to always choose HIPAA-compliant telemedicine software to ensure the safety and privacy of secret medical history.

Who is Using Telemedicine in 2025?

• Johns Hopkins Medicine
• Cleveland Clinic
• Mayo Clinic
• Kaiser Permanente
• Intermountain Healthcare
• Ascension
• Veterans Health Administration (VA)
• Department of Defense (DoD)
• Teladoc Health
• Doctor on Demand
• MDLive

What is the Difference Between Telemedicine and Telehealth?

While telemedicine is more specifically related to remote clinical services, telehealth is a broader term and includes services like remote patient monitoring, telepharmacy, education, etc. 

What are Some Common Telehealth Program Examples?

• Virtual Doctor Visits
• Remote Patient Monitoring
• Post-Discharge Care
• Patient Education
• Telehealth Clinics

What are Some Common Telehealth Devices Examples?

• Remote Patient Monitoring Devices
• Virtual Stethoscopes
• Digital Otoscopes
• Pulse Oximeters
• Wireless Scales

What Equipment Do You Need for Telemedicine Practice?

Some of the vital equipment required by practitioners to deliver telemedicine services include:

• A Good Webcam
• Reliable High-Speed Internet
• A Failover Line
• Optional Optimization Tool: SD-WAN
• Digital Medical Scopes and Accessories
• Tablet(s)
• Visual Aids

About the Author