How Virtual Health Assistants Help Cancer Patients and Families
How Virtual Health Assistants Can Help Cancer Patients and their Families
Cancer is a frightening disease that can impact people and their families in many ways. It can be a difficult thing to go through, both for the person who is diagnosed and their loved ones. While there are many treatments available for cancer, it can be a challenge to know what to do and where to turn for help.
The problem
Cancer is a group of diseases that involve abnormal cell growth. The cells in cancerous tumors can invade and damage surrounding tissues and organs. In the body, cancer can develop practically everywhere. But most often occurs in the lungs, breasts, prostate, or colon.
The second leading cause of death in the US is cancer which is responsible for 1,600 deaths per day. In addition, the leading cause of mortality for women ages 35 and 54 is cancer. There are many types of cancer, and they can occur almost anywhere in the body. While there are many treatments available for cancer, it can be a challenge to know what to do and where to turn for help.
While there are many resources available to help people with cancer and their families, not all of them are accessible or affordable. Virtual health assistant services provide an invaluable resource for clients and their families. Virtual assistants (VAs) are trained to improve workflow in the office resulting in better healthcare services for patients and their families.
Virtual health assistants in oncology
A virtual assistant is a healthcare professional who provides support to people with cancer and their families through the use of technology. Medical virtual assistants can help answer questions, make prescription refills, and perform other procedures. A virtual assistant can also handle back-office tasks to ensure data security and save time for medical practices.
A virtual assistant can also provide security to people with cancer by confirming insurance coverage and offering a better solution, if any. Virtual health assistants can be an invaluable resource for cancer patients and their families, as they can help to make the treatment process easier to navigate. Having the same virtual medical assistant also helps the practice reduce costs and provide physicians with better workflow solutions.
Promoting quality encounters
Inhouse staff members benefit from having a virtual healthcare assistant as they can help manage appointments and medications for people with cancer. Registered nurses can devote more attention to their patients by using a virtual healthcare assistant and save time managing administrative tasks. Time is vital for these people, and VAs can help make their treatment more manageable.
Although oncology is a specialized field, the impact of a cancer diagnosis has radical implications for the client and their families. A virtual assistant can be vital for healthcare providers and other medical professionals to help people cope. Fortunately, a virtual assistant gives doctors and their staff more time to help a patient through this difficult time.
Provide patient education
In addition, a virtual assistant can help to provide education to people with cancer and their families about cancer and its treatment. This education can be invaluable in helping people to enable them, and their families comprehend and cope with the challenges of cancer. The patient and their loved ones have many questions that virtual health assistants can answer. A virtual assistant can answer any questions they may have and help a patient schedule chemo or radiation therapy.
A virtual healthcare assistant can help people with cancer by providing educational resources about cancer. Knowing more about their condition can help people and their families feel more prepared to navigate the treatment plan. A virtual health assistant’s expertise and guidance can help ensure that they have all the information needed to make informed decisions about their treatment.
Increasing adherence to the treatment plan
A virtual assistant can help improve the standard of care people receive by managing administrative tasks and giving the staff more time for patient care. A virtual assistant can provide help people with cancer, and their families go through a difficult time by helping to manage appointments. This way, they do not miss any therapy sessions, which is crucial for their treatment.
Virtual scribes also help manage meds and other treatments, which can ease the burden on both people and providers. Other treatments may include alternative therapies such as acupuncture or counseling. A virtual assistant can help manage to schedule and confirm these appointments as well.
Maintaining mental health
Being diagnosed with cancer can be devastating and can bring out various mental concerns for people and their significant others. A virtual assistant is crucial when people and family members wish to discuss therapies and inquire more about their options. A virtual assistant can also help family members by providing information about how they can best assist their loved one during treatment.
Providing other assistance, like talking to a therapist or giving encouragement, are vital for people diagnosed with cancer. A virtual assistant can provide guidance, education, and even emotional care to people with cancer and their loved ones. They can help improve the overall quality of life for people with cancer simply by ensuring they can always contact their healthcare provider.
Reduce stress
Cancer patients often experience a great deal of stress due to their diagnosis and treatment. Virtual assistants can help to reduce this stress by providing people with access to information. People with cancer can communicate with their virtual healthcare assistant anytime, anywhere, which can help to ease the burden of managing cancer treatments.
Families often feel overwhelmed when their loved one is diagnosed with cancer, and they can benefit from the support of a virtual healthcare assistant. Families can receive education about cancer treatments and what to expect during the patient’s treatment journey. This information can help families feel more prepared and less stressed.
Virtual assistants in various cancer stages
Cancer patients often require a lot of help, in various ways, from family and friends. However, there are times when this support is not enough. Virtual health assistants can provide the additional aid people need in cases like these.
Cancer prevention
Virtual health assistants can help prevent cancer in a number of ways. One way is by providing information and practical ways to avoid the risk of having cancer. Healthcare facilities can ask their VAs to provide cancer awareness creatives for social media accounts and posters.
WHO has determined that cancer comes from normal cells that transform into tumor cells, typically progressing from pre-cancerous lesions to malignant cells. They found that these changes result from the interaction of genetic factors and external agents. They categorized these agents into physical, chemical, and biological carcinogens.
Physical carcinogens include ultraviolet and ionizing radiation. Chemical carcinogens include components of tobacco smoke, alcohol, asbestos, aflatoxin (a food contaminant), and arsenic (drinking water contaminant). Biological carcinogens are infections caused by certain bacteria, viruses, or parasites.
Incidence rates significantly increase with age, probably due to risk build-up combined with a less effective tendency for cellular response mechanisms in the older age group. Prevention is always better in the early stages of life, but as individuals, most of us tend to be aware of cancer in our late 30s or 40s. Having a virtual assistant cater to client inquiries about cancer across various medical practices could undoubtedly raise awareness about this disease.
Early detection
Virtual health assistants can also help people keep track of their screening appointments and provide help for families and friends. Screening aims to identify individuals with results suggestive of pre-cancer or a specific cancer way before any symptoms are present. Further tests can then be done for a more definitive diagnosis, so Starting treatment as soon as feasible is possible.
Early detection gives a person enough time to consider options and prepare for the treatment they choose. Virtual health assistants can help with things like gathering information about the disease and tracking treatment progress. They can also provide emotional aid to people and their families by informing them of ways how to help their loved ones.
Screening programs can detect some types of cancer but not all of them. Criteria based on age and medical history limit the capability of screening to already established high-risk groups. Individually, one must be aware of how their body reacts toward their environment and know when to seek help.
Cancer treatments are most effective when the type of cancer is identified early, and prompt management is initiated. Early detection can increase the survival rate as well as a better response to treatment. It has also been shown to be less expensive than those already with symptoms or in the late stage of the disease.
Having a virtual assistant cover your office 24/7 could provide doctors and their staff with critical information that could be missed during a visit. A client may call in with a symptom that comes and goes, and they only have time to report it at the end of the day. Oncologists can benefit from these rare insights and increase clients’ survival chances with their virtual staff.
Treatment course
Undergoing chemotherapy, targeted biological therapy, radiotherapy, or hormonal treatments can be cumbersome for people. A virtual assistant can provide patient care by being able to answer their concerns 24/7 or when they have anxiety attacks after regular office hours. VAs handling these calls lessens physician baggage and enables them to care for more clients.
Advances in medicine have led to effective treatment and cure of some types of cancer. Although it does not soften the blow of the diagnosis for many people, knowing about their specific illnesses can help keep anxiety at bay. Giving people any aid to lessen anxiety can help them focus on getting better each day.
Virtual assistants can also go over treatment goals with the individual and their families as often as they need to grasp the diagnosis. Generally, treatments aim to cure, if not prolong, the life of people suffering from this disease. Quality of life is also a priority component of the treatment course, as the side effects can potentially disrupt a person’s way of life.
VAs may provide help for people with cancer by addressing their side effects and how they can better manage them. Delegating this task to a VA ensures that people can get the necessary help they need anytime they experience a side effect. VAs can also document any calls that come in after hours for your staff to review in the morning, which efficiently streamlines your workflow.
Palliative care
In the later stages of cancer, virtual health assistants can continue to provide aid by helping with tasks like managing medications and appointments. They can also help families find community or home-based care, if necessary, as the disease progresses. They can also provide emotional bolstering to both the individual and their families.
Palliative care is focused more on the relief of symptoms and ways to ease the suffering of an individual. Virtual assistants can help people by tracking and monitoring the severity of their symptoms. This data can help oncologists determine the adjustments necessary for their meds and therapies.
Although the mortality rate due to cancer has declined, many still go through the treatment process to survive. Palliative care is not just saved for terminal stages but may be given at any stage of the disease. This is why virtual assistants are an asset in the field of oncology.
Skills needed by virtual assistants to support cancer patients
There are many skills that virtual assistants need to aid people with cancer and their families, and some are enumerated below:
Effective communication skills
VAs need to be able to communicate effectively with people and their families to provide assistance. They need to be discreet about the terminology used in addressing concerns and inquiries. They also need to be proficient in layman’s terms for people without medical background and their families to have a good grasp of certain aspects of care.
Understanding reactions
People react differently from each other, so it is best for VAs to understand the emotional toll that cancer can take. Denial, anger, frustration, and desperation are all too common for people with cancer and their families. Understanding the reactions of people with cancer enables the VAs to give them the best assistance even when they are initially against it at first.
Empathetic
Virtual assistants also need to be discreet about the needs of the individuals and their families and be able to provide compassion and understanding. At a time when a person’s world seems to collapse, VAs can offer options or plans to keep them going. Sometimes a sympathetic ear is all they need in order to decide on the next course of action.
Knowledgeable
VAs also need to be able to provide information and any supporting literature related to treatment and care. Knowing about the specific type of cancer enables the VA to understand the appropriate information to provide people with cancer. Different types of cancer warrant different approaches, and it is always best to customize health plans rather than have a standard handout.
Multi-tasker
Being a VA for an oncologist’s office still requires multitasking skills, as an organized office leads to a productive workplace. Staying on top of deadlines while tracking different results is part of a VAs daily routine and essential for practitioners and patients alike. Various systems are now available for VAs to do multiple things at once, making them an asset to any medical practice.
To summarize
Virtual health assistants can significantly help people with cancer and their families by providing them with care whenever they need it. Tasks such as managing appointments and meds, tracking symptoms, and providing emotional care can be delegated to VAs. They are an asset in the field of oncology because they can be an extension of the office even after regular business hours.
By understanding the reactions of people with cancer, virtual health assistants can provide compassion and understanding to those who need it most. Having knowledge about specific types of cancer allows VAs to assist people with cancer better. With their multitasking skills, virtual health assistants are able to manage an oncologist’s office effectively.
Virtual health assistants can be a vital resource for people with cancer as they can help make the treatment course easier to navigate. By providing support and education, virtual health assistants can help improve their condition. Virtual health assistants can help reduce stress and improve the overall care experience for cancer patients.
You and your staff can spend more time with patient encounters while leaving the administrative tasks to the scribes. With a virtual healthcare assistant, you can help people with cancer take control of their cancer journey and center their attention on healing. Virtual health assistants can assist cancer patients through all stages of the disease.
If you are an oncologist, consider using the services of a virtual healthcare assistant to help manage your practice. Patient treatment and support are crucial throughout this challenging time. With the guidance and support of a virtual healthcare assistant, your patients can focus on getting well and regaining their strength.