How Technology Continues to Change the Medical Field

Technology has changed a lot of aspects in our lives for the better. We have access to daily news at our fingertips. We can quickly communicate with our friends and family, even hundreds of thousands of miles away, in seconds. Technology has also played a huge role in the advances of the medical field. It has made access to medical care quicker, more convenient, and much more affordable. Every day, computers and other advanced medical equipment, continue to improve our access to great medical care.

Convenience In previous years if you needed medical care, you would have to phone your physician, wait for an open appointment for days, sometimes weeks. If your physician was out of the office, you would be required to see a new physician. If you required after hours care, you could either wait until the next business day or you could go to your local emergency department. Today, however, technology can made access to physicians much more convenient.

You can schedule an appointment with your physician via text message. You can even communicate with medical providers through your phone or Email. If you require medical care after business hours, you can visit an advantage urgent care center. Most local urgent care centers take walk ins and you can be in and out within minutes. In fact, the majority of centers remain open until 7PM or later on weeknights (90.6%), with two out of five remaining open until 9PM or later. Some technological devices even allow you to see the wait times, before visiting the urgent care for kids or adults center.

Faster diagnostic tools Perhaps one of the biggest advances in the medical field are the technological advances to medical tools. At one time, it could take months, sometimes years, to diagnose a, now easily diagnosable condition. Sometimes you can receive a diagnosis and medications on your first or second visit with your doctor. Some advantage urgent care centers are even able to provide diagnosis and medical care for those requiring urgent medical care.

More cost effective Because medical care once took longer and required more testing for diagnosis, the costs were higher. With the saved time and conveniences, patients can expect to pay less for their medical care received. Patients who experienced an after hours medical emergency were often met with high hospital emergency department bills. It did not matter if your condition was actually an emergency, simply that you paid a visit to the emergency department. You can expect to pay similar for your visit to the advantage urgent care as you would a visit to your primary physician.

Reduced wait times Physician offices are often synonymous with long wait times. Many physician offices overbook, meaning that you are never actually seen at your appointment time. However, when you visit a local urgent care center, you are likely to be seen within minutes of visiting. Roughly 60% of all urgent care centers have a wait time of less than 15 minutes to see a physician or mid level provider, and 65% have a physician on site at all times.

Easier access to needed prescriptions Prescription processes at your primary physician?s office may be inconvenient. Technology improvements at many advantage urgent care centers, however, allow patients to receive prescriptions virtually. Approximately 40% of urgent care centers use electronic prescription ordering systems, with substantially larger proportions using computerized systems for viewing lab and imaging results, collecting patient demographics, billing, condition and procedure coding, and clinical notes.

Technology has become a crucial part of our world. Without it, we would be unable to do many of the things we have become reliant upon. Technology has also drastically improved medical care, allowing patients to be seen quicker, in more convenient of settings, and for a lowered price. You can find urgent care on your cell phone devices, quickly establishing how long you will have to wait for medical care. It is expected that technology will only continue to expand upon needed medical services, with the patients satisfaction in mind.