GLOSSARY · VISITS
Synchronous visit, a live visit, in real time.
A synchronous visit is a telehealth appointment that happens in real time, with the patient and provider connected at the same moment by video or phone.
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What it means
It is the telehealth version of an office visit. The provider can ask follow-up questions, watch how the patient responds, and on video see skin, eyes, or range of motion. Audio-only calls count as synchronous too, but many states and payers treat them differently from video.
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Why it matters to a brand operator
Some rules require a live visit. Several states require audio and video to establish a new patient-provider relationship, and prescribing a controlled substance by telehealth requires a real-time visit under the DEA's rules. For those patients, the funnel has to include scheduling.
Live visits take more provider time and add a wait, which lowers conversion compared with asynchronous care. Brands usually keep them for the states, treatments, and patients that need them and handle the rest asynchronously.
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How Tessic Health handles it
A completed consult on Tessic Health costs a flat $25, and providers licensed in all 50 states practice under the client's brand, so a brand pays no premium for a live visit where the rules or the patient's case call for one.
See the published termsRELATED TERMS
Words that come up next.
Asynchronous care
Asynchronous care is a telehealth model that lets a patient and a provider exchange information at different times, so a treatment decision can be made without a live call.
DEA telemedicine rules
DEA telemedicine rules are a set of federal regulations that decide when a provider may prescribe a controlled substance to a patient they have only seen by telehealth.
Patient-provider relationship
The patient-provider relationship is a legal relationship that begins when a licensed provider evaluates a patient, and it gives the provider a duty to treat that patient to the standard of care.