How robots helped protect doctors from coronavirus

Social distancing is as necessary to protect healthcare providers as it is anyone else, so primary care providers in the U.K. are begrudgingly making the move to telemedicine—meeting with and diagnosing patients over a video call. Neighborhood doctors say the new approach saves them time, and telemedicine companies say that demand and orders have increased over 70%. Doctors have also set up "dirty zones" to check possibly infected patients, and "safe zones" to see patients with other ailments.

In Colorado, most mental health services have been moved online as a response to the novel coronavirus outbreak. Called telemental health, the virtual sessions give those that regularly see a therapist, or need to because of increased anxiety during the pandemic, an option to from home. While this is being seen as a breakthrough in services, barriers like access to technology and the lack of interpersonal connection provides their own set of challenges.

In Battle Creek, Michigan, a church has turned to holding online Sunday service during the pandemic, and in doing so, has gained a larger congregation. While there are limitations to attending online services, and some don't feel like "Internet-based connections" are real, around 200 people still attend each online service, including some individuals from overseas.

Funding from a professional coaching, therapy, and counseling academy has helped a certified life coach and non-clinical psychotherapist offer free sessions to people in Nigeria who are struggling to cope with setbacks brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program, which utilizes video calls and WhatsApp messaging, has broadened access for those who may not be able to seek help due to financial constraints.

The COVID-19 pandemic has complicated how seniors are able to come together for companionship, but groups in Illinois are trying to utilize technology to address the problem. While the digital divide is a significant limitation to this approach, some seniors say "they are having new experiences, meeting new people and that their world has actually expanded since COVID-19."

What started as a small group of young adults wanting to help their aging parents navigate telehealth during the coronavirus pandemic, is now a multi-state program that provides devices to seniors and low-income people as a way to close the digital divide. The group has grown to over 300 volunteers and partners with local health care providers, who in turn help their patients set up their new devices provided by the organization.

Much of prenatal care has moved to online video conferencing and doctor guided at-home self-monitoring during the coronavirus pandemic but some of these solutions may last long after the pandemic passes due to the positive impact they're having. Although these changes do have limitations and cannot replace doctor visits entirely, for some, the addition of telemedicine has acted as both a time saver and eliminated barriers such as lack of transportation.

The coronavirus pandemic has prompted health insurance companies to support coverage of telemedicine across the United States, and in New Hampshire, mental health counselors are seeing many advantages to the practice. Although some aspects of in-person appointments and consultations cannot be replicated virtually, overall, telemedicine has eliminated a number of barriers for many patients.

Immunocompromized individuals are under stricter guidelines to not leave their homes during the coronavirus because they are more susceptible to contracting the virus, but that can leave many feeling isolated. To manage that isolation for cancer patients, the nonprofit Cancer Support Community Redondo Beach is using online technology to connect community members through support groups.

To contain the coronavirus and manage overwhelmed health care systems, nurses and doctors are returning from retirement, recent medical graduates are being asked to report early to their hospitals and telehealth is gaining viability and validity. Across the world, nations are working to rapidly reform the health care system to better care for this influx of patients, and some of these changes may last beyond the pandemic.