Unlike the rest of the world, SA will not allow medical doctors to use telemedicine for new patients during the Covid-19 pandemic
Medical organisations representing tens of thousands of doctors and therapists are unhappy that they are only permitted to use video or phone calls to only treat existing patients during the Covid-19 outbreak, saying theregulator of doctors and therapists
Since mid-March, SA doctors have been lobbying the health minister and the regulator to ensure the ban on telemedicine is lifted. With many doctors self-isolating for two weeks at a time after diagnosing an infected patient, it is better for the constrained health system to allow much-needed doctors to work from home.
“There is no rational basis for the guideline ... why would a doctor need a prior relationship with a patient to give advice about the coronavirus?” asked Sama president Dr Angelique Coetzee, speaking on behalf of all the groups.creates risk for patients who should ... comply with the national lockThey also say the restriction “perpetuates the deep inequalities in the healthcare system by not allowing patients who, because of financial barriers ...
Doctors are trained to know that if a patient requires examination and then they can refer them to doctors rooms or hospitals.The groups argue that the HPCSA’s guidelines are incongruent with telemedicine regulations around the world.
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