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TELEMEDICINE VISITS NOW AVAILABLE* THROUGH MIDDLEBORO PEDIATRICS

In the current environment of COVID-19, it is critically important to all of us at Middleboro Pediatrics that we are able to provide you necessary and appropriate medical care in the safest manner possible to limit exposure to the coronavirus.

All of our doctors and nurse practitioners are now able to provide some of that care directly from our office to your home through use of video telemedicine via your phone, tablet or computer! This technology allows for more personal interactions with you than a telephone call alone and can allow your clinician to do some limited physical examination to improve our ability to assess your medical needs. Not all types of visits are suitable for video telemedicine however, and we want to reassure you that we are still in the office to see patients in person. We will work with you to determine whether an in-person or video telemedicine visit would be more appropriate for you/your child’s need.

Currently, we are using the HIPAA compliant doxy.me telemedicine platform. Here is some basic information about the program to answer questions you may have should you request or we suggest a video visit:

Doxy.me is HIPAA law compliant program- your medical information and discussion remains private and secure.
No patient information is provide to or stored by doxy.me and the video is not recorded.
Video visits are entered through an email link – patients do not require downloading any apps or programs.
Video visits can be done via any smartphone (iOS (Apple) or) Android), tablet, or computer which has a functioning microphone and camera.
Video visits are scheduled – you will receive an email link to click on which will check you into a virtual “waiting room” and then your provider will meet you there to connect.
We suggest locating a private space in your home with the strongest Wifi signal possible to have the best connection and to insure that your video visit remains as private as needed from other household members.

With the current state of emergency for COVID-19 issued by the government, video telemedicine visits are a covered service by most insurers including MassHealth and are billed in the same manner as an in-office visit. Massachusetts has directed almost all insurers to waive patient cost components (e.g. copayments, deductibles) while the state of emergency is in effect. This rule may not apply to everyone however, and if you have an out-of-state insurance plan or self-funded insurance plan, you may want to check with your insurer about your payment responsibilities.

*NOTE: Please check your health insurance coverage to make sure that telemedicine visits are covered. You may also contact our office and we will assist you in obtaining this information.

Our initial experience these past weeks with video visits has been very positive. Families are finding it easy to use, and our doctors and nurse practitioners enjoy being able to see our parents and patients! Our next challenge is to figure out how to “virtually” give out stickers at the end of the visit 🙂.

Examples of TeleHealth appointments include: