Verizon Business on Monday announced its new BlueJeans Telehealth technology. The company bills it as a simple and accessible means of connecting patients and providers remotely via video.

WHY IT MATTERS
Expected to be generally available next month, BlueJeans Telehealth is designed to offer an intuitive experience for patients, providers and administrators, says Verizon

Using the device of their choice, patients can connect with providers via the BlueJeans app or a desktop or mobile browser.

Verizon touts the clarity of the platform's Dolby Voice Audio, and the simplicity and efficiency of the clinician experience – with visits embedded within their existing electronic health record workflows. Licensing is based on a per-visit model, according to the company, allowing for easier data capture and reporting for reimbursement.

A BlueJeans Telehealth virtual visit includes an optional pre-visit medical-condition survey and onboarding materials for patients, enabling providers to customize patient education. It also offers medical interpreter services for more than 200 languages, as well as transcription and closed captioning.

Security features on the HIPAA-ready platform include access controls, encryption, privacy checks, locked meetings and fraud detection.

THE LARGER TREND
Verizon points to its recent white paper on the future of telehealth, which found that 81% of organizations plan to increase investment in telehealth in the next few years, with 85% of decision-makers naming ease of use as a top must-have for effective telehealth outcomes.

BlueJeans Telehealth was expressly designed with that simplicity in mind, according to the company – with easier access for consumers and more flexibility for providers.

"The benefits of digitizing healthcare practices have long been discussed on the clinical side as a way to make care more convenient and efficient for patients, but it wasn’t until the pandemic that we truly realized the way it could transform the patient-physician relationship," said Dr. Scott D Boden, vice president for business innovation at Emory Healthcare, in a statement provided by Verizon.

"The ability to offer virtual visits using tools like BlueJeans during this challenging time is not only helping to keep patients and practitioners like myself safe, it’s also providing a level of care that was previously missing."

ON THE RECORD
"While the use of telemedicine has been steadily growing for some time now, the pandemic has accelerated telehealth adoption and changed the conversation around what patient care will look like moving forward," said Tami Erwin, CEO of Verizon Business.

"We worked closely with an advisory board of health system clinicians and healthcare decision-makers to build BlueJeans Telehealth specifically to address the most pressing needs for a virtual-first telehealth offering – from ease of experience to enhanced security. Today’s launch is just the beginning for Verizon in what we see as the future of telehealth, especially when you consider the innovation that will come from 5G mobility, broadband and cloud capabilities."

Twitter: @MikeMiliardHITN
Email the writer: mike.miliard@himssmedia.com
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