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The pandemic turned the burgeoning technology of telemedicine into a necessity for hospitals treating COVID-19 patients.This video was produced in collaboration with NOVA and is made possible in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.

Discover some of the benefits — and pitfalls — of telemedicine.

Discover some of the benefits — and pitfalls — of telemedicine.

The pandemic forced health care providers to expand and adapt to technology to deliver medical care at a distance. Known as telemedicine, it allows a physician to provide care to a patient at a distant site through electronic communications. 
NET's social media video gives insight into how telemedicine has changed doctors' and patients' daily lives through a rural Nebraska hospital's experiences.

The COVID pandemic created a huge demand for remote telemedicine services.

Telemedicine in Rural Communities

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Telemedicine in Rural CommunitiesPublished: May 4, 2021Narrator: So a robot is your doctor?Kami Kajewski: Well, it was just, like, a little TV monitor actually on wheels. And, um, you know, the nurse was there. And she was the one who checked my vitals. And I don't really know how it all worked, actually,Narrator: The pandemic turned the novel technology of telemedicine into a necessity for hospitals treating COVID-19 patients like Kami Kajewski in Nebraska.Kami Kajewski: They instantly had the results. So I mean, it's amazing how technology is developed.Narrator: At Great Plains Health in North Platte, Nebraska in spring 2020 use of telehealth services jumped 350 percent over the previous year.Dr. Engler: At the beginning, a lot of us were doing telehealth for our COVID and I think it was because COVID was largely unknown and our risks. We weren't sure how severe it would be and if we would be protected or not even in PPE,Narrator: In the U.S. there were 1.6 million doctors visiting with patients using telehealth in the first 3 months of 2020, just as the pandemic began to move in. That’s a 50% increase over the same time the previous year.Mel McNea: We found it very effective, and it worked. The low supply of our personal protective equipment at the time. So, masks, gowns. If they could treat that patient remotely, then they weren't using their masks and gowns in going in the room. Narrator: The longer the pandemic dragged on, some doctors felt telehealth technology fell shortIntercom: We have a unit coming in.Dr. Engler: Emergency medicine is about resuscitation and it's about stabilization until you can assure yourself that the patient is stable enough. It's just not a tool that I'm comfortable using.Nurse: Is it okay if I listen to your heart?Dr. Engler: This for me has been by far, the hardest thing for me to deal with is the patient relationship is essentially gone. And for me, it's about building that relationship, walking in the door of a room, shaking, shaking their hand and sitting down.Nurse: Yes, exactlyDr. Engler: We've realized that we are very well protected, either in a PAPPER and N-95s. So, I stopped using telemedicine because you can't assess how sick they are, unless you're in the room, face-to-face with a patient.Doctor in Office: So how have you been the last time I saw you?Narrator: One real problem: cybersecurity. Hackers took advantage of telemedicine’s popularity.Sam Kassoumeh: I definitely think it's a targeted category because, um, it falls into that classification of high risk data, high value data.Narrator: Since pandemic began, hospitals and clinics suffered a rapid increase in attacks on networks with viruses and malware. Up 117 percent.Sam Kassoumeh: When they have an internet connection, that's one more door, or like another gateway for hackers to go knock on, to open. And the unfortunate reality with digitally connected devices is security is oftentimes an afterthought.Narrator: Telehealth equipment, according to the Security-Scorecard report, saw “a drastic spike” of sharing of stolen, confidential patient records on the Dark Web where hackers meet online.Sam Kassoumeh: When we see the sharing of patient records, that's usually a strong indicator to us that the web applications, like when you go to a web portal and log in or open your phone and log in, that's like a web application those web applications that are storing the data are oftentimes vulnerable to attack.Narrator: The telehealth apps for phones and tablets linking doctors and patients may be especially vulnerableSam Kassoumeh: My fear is that maybe they're skipping security or just doing the bare minimum to get the checkbox in order to go live and be put in the, you know, be put in the app store.Narrator: After a scary start to her COVID hospitalization, Kami improved quickly.Before the end of the week she checked out and headed back home to the family ranch an hour to the west. She’s fine with getting her follow up visits through telehealth.Kami it was different. I felt very comfortable. It was kind of neat how i could see and talk to my doctor. I dont think i’d ever have a real problem with it. .Narrator: Before 2017, 8 out of 10 hospitals and clinics did not expect most of their patients to be using telemedicine services. Many didn’t see the need to invest in the equipment.Dr. Freitas: Yes, I was skeptical at first, you know, I, I think most of, uh, infectious disease doctors they rely a lot on their assessment and being there next to the patient and looking for subtle signs that might help you come up with a diagnosis or a treatment.Narrator: There’s agreement, telehealth technology is beginning to catch up with the level of care needed for critically ill patients.Dr. Freitas: But there's a lot of good things that the cameras actually on there is something they need to see. I can see actually better on the camera than I was my eyes. Now the technology is so good.Dr. Engler: So we have a robot that we can put in the room and be able to sit at a screen and be able to talk to the patient, even have a portable stethoscope that we can hear them as well.Narrator: One survey of patients with telehealth experience found over half would welcome replacing an office visit with an online doctor consultation even after the pandemic clears up.Kami Kajewski: I mean i was very comfortable with it the entire time. I didn't feel like I was losing any personal one-to-one contact with them. I wouldn't be opposed to it at all if that’s what needed to be done, especially if I knew that I could see my provider.

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Telemedicine in Rural Communities

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