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To meet the demands interrupted by the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) and protect patients with chronic diseases, the Ministry of Health announced today (24) that patients from the Unified Health System (SUS) will be able to make virtual consultations, in project called Virtual Consultancy, which invests in telemedicine and telehealth solutions
Starting in May, this previously unknown online service will focus on primary health care, which is the one that acts at the first signs of disease and even prevention. Through this initiative, health professionals will have access to the platform for virtual medical and nursing consultations.
For the time being, the first version of the platform will be initially available to physicians, with expansion for nurses and a multidisciplinary team in the second half of May.
Action against COVID-19
The launch is associated with the crisis facing COVID-19, where the risk of exposure of the new coronavirus by the population and health professionals should be avoided whenever possible. The Virtual Office will serve so that health professionals can assist by teleconsultation and help patients with hypertension and diabetes, for example.
In this first moment, around 20 thousand doctors and nurses who work in family health units throughout the country must receive access and training to use the system. In addition, professionals who join the program will receive free certification for the practice of telemedicine and telehealth.
How will it work?
The platform will allow doctors to register an appointment remotely, in addition to issuing certificates and prescriptions. Professionals who wish to participate in the program will receive special training to use the platform and an ICP-Brazil digital certificate. This will be necessary to make the consultations and also issue the necessary documents (digital medical certificates and prescriptions)
The citizen can request assistance by spontaneous or scheduled demand, making a request to schedule a remote consultation for the health team normally responsible for their care. In this model, teleconsultation can be carried out through the channel in which the patient has the most affinity, being able to choose between the telephone and the videoconference.
It is also important to emphasize that the choice of the type of care modality must be conditioned according to the patient’s clinical situation, and the final decision always depends on the professional. At the end of the service, the patient will receive in his email a kind of summary of the consultation along with a satisfaction survey to measure his consultation.
History
The Virtual Office platform is yet another action among TeleSUS services. The population already has preclinical care by phone, online chat and application, and can be remotely monitored and monitored in suspected cases of COVID-19. For health professionals, there is a telephone channel available to answer questions with other professionals and clarify diagnoses.
The Virtual Office is a partnership between the Secretary of Primary Health Care (SAPS) and the Albert Einstein Hospital, through the SUS Institutional Development Support Program (PROADI-SUS) and the estimated amount for execution is R $ 4,023 million
It is worth remembering that telemedicine was only temporarily regulated in Brazil. The service model should remain in effect until the end of the public health crisis, as announced.
Source: Ministry of Health.
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