Before the pandemic, billboards in London, England, advertised a doctor-in-your-pocket service. Targeted at busy commuters, it consisted of a smartphone app and a promise of a video link-up to a real doctor within 45 minutes. What’s not to like?
Plenty. The pop-up video doc may be fine, on this occasion, for busy accountant Adesh Patel, who wants an antibiotic in the post for his septic finger. Indeed, patients like him may not even need a video call, they can explain their symptoms to a doctor by phone. The video link was, arguably, a commercial gimmick to lure the worried well.
Read the full article on The Conversation website, written by Professors Trish Greenhalgh (Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences).
Oxford is a subscribing member of The Conversation. Find out how you can write for The Conversation.