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How can adding Maple Virtual Care benefit your business?

By: Benefits by Design | Tuesday October 1, 2024

Updated : Friday September 27, 2024

text: How can adding Maple Virtual Care benefit your business? Image: hand holding a smartphone with a doctor on the screen.

Virtual care gives patients access to doctors, specialists, and more via their phone, smart-device, or computer. Many can be accessed anytime, anywhere, and may be the only way to see a physician for some people living in remote areas. Also known as telemedicine, it was elevated to new heights as a result of the pandemic.

Because of the advancements made in recent years, telemedicine looks like it’s here to stay! Indeed, more than 80% of Canadian employees agree their employer should offer virtual health care access through their employee benefits.

Telemedicine in Canada: What it is, Where It’s Going, and Why it Matters

The case for virtual care

There are many reasons why using virtual care can be a preferred method for patients.

Firstly, the privacy and discretion afforded by virtual care is incomparable. Moreover, the swiftness with which patients can access care means they can see a family physician during a break, no matter where they are. For private or mobility health issues, employees don’t even need to leave the comfort of their home to see a doctor.

Breaking down barriers to access

Seeing a primary care provider in Canada is becoming less and less accessible. In fact, there were approximately 13 family physicians per 10,000 population in 2021, with some regions being much worse off than others. Plus, sitting in a clinic waiting room is never appealing. So, how does virtual care help patients access these doctors?

Time

Virtual care eliminates the time needed to see a physician. Care can be accessed often in minutes. It eliminates the time spent commuting to and from your appointment, and sitting in the waiting room. It can also be exhausting if you are unwell, and could even make you worse off than before. Employees won’t need to take half a shift off work for small health issues or prescription refills.

Distance

Virtual care removes the barrier of distance by giving employees access to a physician immediately. Not everyone has access to a primary care provider within a reasonable distance. Patients in this situation often delay or neglect visiting a doctor if they are unwell or injured, causing comorbidities and worsening conditions.

Provincial Telehealth Resources: An Interactive Map of Canada

Cost

Using virtual care, employees can remove possible costs associated with seeing a physician. Depending on where you are, these could include transportation, accommodation and meals, plus time off work.

Family doctor availability

Currently, 22% of Canadian adults do not have a family doctor. Family physicians are scarce, and in more rural areas, there are even fewer. However, employees don’t require a family physician to access virtual care.

Continuity of care

Employees may not see the same doctor each time they use virtual care, yet all their records can be accessed by the doctor they agree to see. Between family doctors, walk-in clinics, and emergency visits, nothing is shared, which means allergies to medications, and other important medical history may be overlooked.

Benefits to your business

When your employees have quicker access to medical care, they perform better, are happier and healthier, and are less likely to develop a chronic disease. Since physical and mental health are closely linked, improving one will help with the other. Virtual care provides access to specialist referrals, including mental health clinicians.

1. Less absenteeism and presenteeism – Virtual care allows employees to access care without the time and challenges of visiting their doctor physically. This reduces the number of hours or days employees will need to call in sick. Furthermore, illnesses and injuries are taken care of quicker, eliminating the need to come to work sick.

2. Improved overall health of employees – when employees are able to take care of health issues right when they arise, it leads to a healthier workforce. Dragging out recovery is costly to both the employee and business in the form of lost wages and lost productivity. Plus, employees are at a lower risk of developing chronic symptoms or comorbidities by accessing immediate care via telemedicine.

3. Increased access to preventative care – not all appointments need to be reactive. In fact, employees can use telemedicine to access preventative care. Health screenings are one of the best ways to catch health issues before they become to big. Virtual care offers lab and imaging requisitions and specialist referrals.

4. Improved organizational health – when employees have easy access to healthcare, they are more likely to take care of their health. Healthier employees are usually happier, which promotes a consistent culture of positivity. On the other hand, unhealthy employees may complain more, which can bring down the mood of the office or worksite.

Virtual Healthcare: Utilization and Demand

All about Maple Virtual Care

Maple Virtual Care is Canada’s premium virtual care service, offering timely and effective online care from Canadian-licensed general practitioners. Benefits by Design (BBD) has partnered with Maple to provide seamless administration of the program.

Maple Virtual Care highlights:

Canada’s largest online doctor network, with over 700 skilled Canadian physicians comprised of 66% ER doctors, and 33% family physicians.

Patients can get a direct connection to a physician 24/7/365, via text, chat, audio, or video consultations.

The average wait time is less than five minutes.

The service is fully bilingual – both mobile and web applications, as well as doctors and specialists are available in both French and English.

Doctors can address many common illnesses and medical issues, such as flu, hives, migraines, sore throats, sinus, skin and respiratory infections, bites and stings – plus many more!

Patient information is available to all doctors on the platform. This continuity of care means no matter which doctor a patient sees, they will have access to their records.

Prescriptions can be sent to your pharmacy of choice or delivered to your door for free.

Patients can get lab and imaging requisitions and specialist referrals.

Patients can see specialists who work directly through Maple Virtual Care if desired – which offers even further continuity of care.

All medical records and history are kept confidential, private, and secure.

It should be noted that in emergencies or for conditions where it is necessary to have a physical examination (i.e. looking into an ear, assessing a broken bone), that patients should visit the emergency room or see a doctor in-person.

It’s clear that virtual care can help bridge the gap between timely and convenient access to care for patients who do not have immediate medical support in close proximity, or who must wait to see one of the few family physicians available. Providing this type of coverage empowers employees to seek preventative care and improve their physical and mental health.