Telehealth user guide

Telehealth allows practitioners to run remote video consultations with patients. A Telehealth Appointment sends the patient an SMS link before consultation time, and the practitioner is notified when the patient is online and waiting to begin. 

Requires Zedmed 38.5 or later.

Overview

Key features included with Telehealth:

• Provides an integrated workflow for managing Telehealth appointments (See Workflow Summary for details).
• Embeds video within Clinical and provides display options for your web browser or phone.
• Notifies when the patient is waiting in the Telehealth session by displaying a banner on the patient record.
• Reminds patients of the session by sending an SMS that includes a link for the Telehealth session.
• Identifies Telehealth bookings in the Appointment Book and the Waiting Room.
• Includes a Companion App to help cloud users manage the waiting room on their local web browser.
• Integrates with Sign Sign for streamlined authentication.

Workflow Summary

1. The patient books a Telehealth appointment and receives a confirmation SMS.
2. Before the appointment (e.g., 15 minutes), the patient receives an SMS with the Telehealth link. 
3. The patient taps the link to open Telehealth, then taps Join (selectable 30 minutes before appointment).
   This starts the video connection and Attends them to the Waiting Room.
4. The practitioner sees the patient in the Waiting Room and selects Admit.
   This opens the patient's record and starts the consultation timer.
5. The practitioner opens Telehealth from Zedmed or the Companion App (for Zedmed Cloud).
6. The practitioner selects Start Consult in Telehealth.

Reception workflow

Reception creates a Telehealth appointment as required, which is indicated by a camera icon in the Appointment Grid. 

The patient is automatically Admitted to the Waiting Room when they select Join on the Telehealth homepage.
Reception can see the Appointment Type and monitor the Attend time if required. 

Practitioner: on-prem workflow 

To run the Telehealth consultation.

1. Monitor the Waiting Room.
   The patient will appear there when they have opened Telehealth and selected Join. 
   The patient's Telehealth will have the video and audio running, and display the message, 'Waiting for doctor'.
2. When ready, select Admit.
   This opens the patient's record in Zedmed and starts the consultation timer.

3. 

   A Red notification banner appears on the patient's record when they have select Join in Telehealth.

   

4. From the Current Encounter menu, the practitioner opens Telehealth using one of four options:
   •  In Clinical - opens Telehealth within Clinical.
   •  In Browsers - the default browser launches Telehealth.
   •  Copy URL - for Zedmed Cloud users. Open your desktop browser and copy-paste the URL provided.
   •  SMS Link to doctors - sends a link to the doctor's phone using the mobile number in their Doctor Details.
   TIP: The Browser option is ideal when a practitioner has two monitors or needs room for Heidi AI.

   

5. The practitioner selects Start Consult.

   This initiates the Telehealth call with the waiting patient. The screenshot shows Telehealth In Clinical.

   

   If there is a disconnection, select Re-Join to resume the Telehealth consultation.

6. When the leave Icon is selected, Telehealth will close. This does not end the Encounter in Zedmed.

   

Practitioner: cloud workflow 

Due to the bandwidth limitations of Zedmed Cloud, Telehealth practitioners:

• Open the video link in a web browser on their local desktop or mobile phone.
• Use Zedmed's Companion App to manage the Waiting Room on their local PC's web browser.
  For new practitioners, follow the Companion App setup.

Opening the Companion App

When the practitioner starts Zedmed, they should also open the bookmarked Companion App on their local Web Browser. For optimal results, use a second monitor or device, or position next to Zedmed on a single monitor.

 Telehealth consultation:

1. Monitor the Companion App to see when the patient is ready.
   You will still use the Clinical Waiting Room to Admit the patient.
   • In the Companion app, a patient who has not joined, but the doctor has Admitted, will appear as yellow - Admitted.
   • In the Companion app, a patient who opened TeleHealth and selected Join will appear as green - Patient arrived.



2. When ready, Admit the patient from the Waiting Room.
   This opens the patient's record in Clinical and starts the consultation timer.

   

3. Join the video consultation using one of three methods:
   • On the Companion App, select the Open Telehealth icon (patient must be admitted)
     This will display Telenealth in place of the Companion App (back arrow to return to the App).
   • From Zedmed Select Copy URL, and paste the telehealth link into a browser
   • From Zedmed, select SMS Link to doctor to send a link to the practitioner's phone.
4. Each option opens the Telehealth home page.

   

5. Select Start Consult.
   Conduct the consultation as normal, using the video to view and communicate with the patient.
   The patient will be removed from the Companion App once they have been billed.
   

   

Companion App options:

• Filters - Choose between All appointments and Telehealth appointments only.
• Tele Waiting - Show only patients who have arrived (opened the link and clicked  Join).
  If they leave, they will change to Telehealth appointments.
• Show Billed - Includes patients who have been billed (The Waiting Room  is checked for this status).
• Refresh - The Companion App refreshes the patients shown every minute, or when the Refresh button is selected. 

Patient workflow

To join the Telehealth consultation:

1. Receives the Reminder SMS - commonly 15 minutes before the appointment.
2. Selects the Telehealth link in the SMS.
3. From the landing page, the patient can preview their camera and microphone setup (middle screenshot below).
   A message (screenshot three below) will display advising either:
   • The practitioner has started the call.
   • The practitioner will arrive shortly. 
4. Select the Join button.
   The Join button becomes available 30 minutes before the consultation. A message will advise the patient of this.
   Selecting Join will automatically Attend the patient to the Waiting Room.
   For Zedmed Cloud users, the patient will also appear in the Companion App as Patient Arrived. 

Open the Telehealth link	Approve pictures and video	Tap Join

Switching Clinics

The Companion App supports multiple clinics, and the practitioner can switch between each clinic's Waiting Room.

To change Clinics:

1. Select the selector icon on the top right.
2. Select the Clinic from the list shown.
   The Companion App will now show the Waiting room for that Clinic

To add another clinic, see the Companion App setup.