Thank you, Summus, for allowing physicians an opportunity to do what they went to medical school to do. The once naive desire to “just help people,” as many applicants to medical school cite when discussing their motivations for matriculation, now has a way to be fulfilled.
Becoming a physician is arduous, yet glorious. There are significant hoops to jump through with a fiercely competitive application process to simply don a white coat in August as a first year student. The financial outlay is significant for tuition and board, with a large accumulation of debt for many students. The material to learn and study required is intense but captivating. Internship and residency are challenging yet thrilling in the ability to finally take care of patients and be able to put knowledge to use. Over time, for many, that adrenaline fades and the quotidian responsibilities of being a physician muddy the initial vision.
Medicine is an art. Physicians are rarely given the opportunity to deliver their perspective and share their expertise at a level commensurate with their years of experience … particularly in a way they enjoy and during which they feel appropriately respected. In the current environment, physicians and frontline workers face incredible challenges, including lack of time with patients which limits how effectively they can deliver care.
Now, with all the advances in virtual health technology, physicians have new tools and media with which to meet their patients’ needs and preferences. Time and geographic restrictions are no longer a barrier to high quality, personalized guidance across a wide range of diagnoses, conditions, and actions. By allowing physicians to spend time with patients, health literacy barriers begin to fade.
Summus has redefined how virtual specialty care is delivered. Education and guidance can solve the vast majority of concerns for patients, and doesn’t require prescribing medications or tests. It requires time, listening, and sharing. Upon completing their first consultation through Summus, colleagues will frequently send me a text saying: “This is why I went to medical school. Thank you!”
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Post by Mary Mulcare, MD, Summus Chief Medical Officer
