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Anisette has been diagnosed as having early-onset Parkinson’s Disease.  She knows this is a difficult condition to diagnose correctly and that its repercussions will change her life. While she holds her physician who gave her the diagnosis in high regard, she recalls that one of her friends had an acquaintance that had been misdiagnosed and wants to be sure. Like most people, Anisette immediately goes online to try to understand her options, searching not only for information, but clarity and understanding. For Anisette, it’s imperative to ensure that she has taken every practical step in her own healthcare journey.

Over the last decade, the opportunities for patients seeking online information for a medical condition have greatly changed. Almost 3/4 will do their initial investigation online. Many seek out top specialists and programs in their particular field, but inevitably, experts are not always located nearby. Digital solutions can open access to patients who live anywhere with wifi.

What is a second opinion?

Second opinions are becoming a popular procedure for anyone who receives a critical diagnosis that does not require immediate emergency action. Informed patients realize that the diagnosis of any individual physician is not infallible. Two heads are always better than one!

You may have heard the phrase ‘if you build it, they will come,’ popularized by the 1989 film, ‘The Field of Dreams.’ The problem is that this strategy only works in baseball fantasy. Launching a second opinion program is not so different from starting a new branch of business. Simply beginning to offer second opinions as a formalized service does not mean that patients will show up. In other words, if you build it - they will not necessarily come.

Physician-to-physician consults are occurring in your hospital, potentially putting
your organization at risk, while lacking any direct financial benefits for the hospital.

Skilled and experienced physicians are your hospital’s most valuable asset. Their time and knowledge are in great demand. Yet, many regularly engage in a process of giving this away free of charge putting your organization at risk as they do.

Your best and most specialized physicians have unique knowledge and experience. When presented with a complicated diagnosis in your doctor’s subspeciality, colleagues and their patients, reach out for the opinion of your doctors. It’s an informal process and normally doesn’t have any material impact on your hospital. Or does it?

The Uniform Law Commission (ULC), a group comprised of distinguished lawyers across all states and several US territories, passed a new Act that simplifies and enables states who enact it to regulate and promote the practice of telemedicine across state lines. The law provides that physicians who are appropriately licensed and certified in their home state may apply to any other state that has adopted this Act to practice telemedicine consistent with that state’s current regulations for patients within that foreign state. The Act requires that the out-of-state physician must pay a fee and register in that state, removing most other impediments from the interstate practice of telemedicine.