www.doctorondemand.com


I've used this and it is a lifesaver especially if you don't drive. Not for everything but if you have a cold or earache this is the way to go. Inexpensive, too!

If you want to try it PM me and I can give you a code so that your visit is FREE!!

One may find some local access as well. My hospital just added such a service. For $49, you get a typical office visit from the comfort of your home. NO, I don't mean to imply you get the old fashioned "house call" when the physician physically came out to your home. It is the NEW type of technology "house call".

WOW, some day in the near future, we are going to be talking to a robot on the computer and 'he' will examine us.

I've seen the online visits before, Humana insurance offers it too. The only problem is, how do they know if it's not something more serious than the common cold or slight inner ear infection? Not that I see a doctor for the common cold anyways... if that's all that I think it is, and that has gotten me in a bit of health crisis because I thought it was nothing but the common cold, when it was walking pneumonia or a strep infection (not always just strep throat either as strep can infect other parts of the body).

I rarely run fevers and when I do they kind of have to be "caught" because it'll spike for a minute or so and then drop right back down. I've had bronchitis so many times that I don't really notice that I can't breath that well until I well and truly can't breath!!! I mean I've gone for just the regular check-up/physical with my doctor and left with a script for antibiotics and an exporant because I had bronchitis and didn't even know it, I wasn't coughing, and thought I had no problem breathing, and wasn't running a fever or anything.

And what I thought was just tonsillitis one time (negative strep culture) turned out to be walking (viral) pneumonia that took 6 months to go away. Again, no fever, and took about a month before I notice any trouble breathing despite having half a lung in the beginning that was filled with fluid. Midway through recovery it became 1 and over a half lungs filled with fluid and I probably should have been hospitalized but I went to Camden Malpractice Center and the ER doctor didn't think I was in any danger or suffering from pneumonia although my lips were blue, and my blood pressure was 50/30 and oxygen level was 75%. I was fine... (and too oxygen deprived to argue as all my remaining brain cells were just trying to keep me sitting up and conscious.) And my PCP at the time when I went down to see him the next day decided not to hospitalize me simply because I was still walking and talking and thought I really was doing alright, he was afraid that if he did put me in the hospital I would realize I really wasn't doing alright at all and I would just curl up my toes on him.

So I still need some kind of physicality when seeing a doctor or even a nurse practitioner, I'm not picky on which I see honestly at a doctors office. But if I'm going to see a doctor I really need them to give me the once over every time I go in there whether it's for a routine check-up, or a cracked shin... I hate them touching me, but I still need them to check the ears, check the throat, feel the glands, listen to the lungs, etc... About the only thing I know is coming on before even the doctors do, is an inner ear infection Not sure if that's a great thing or not though, as I usual feel it coming on at least a week before the doctors can see anything at all the matter with them and then when they do they freak out about how infected my eardrum is and how close it is to potentially rupturing (usually accompanied with a lecture of why did I wait so long and let them get so infected at which point I tell them to refer back to their notes... been there how many times in the past week telling you I have an ear infection...)

But I'm so lacking in symptoms of most illness that I just simply go to the doctor anytime there news of a strep outbreak, or if anyone in my family has strep or knows they've been exposed to it. And an online doctor can't do a throat culture to see if I caught strep or not (I do very much so wish they could though... that needs to be the next technology they come up with digital doctor house call bags, with speakers designed to listen to the lungs, an at home culture kit, maybe even find away to reduce the amount of blood needed to test for things and get it to where a simply prick of a finger (like the diabetes tests) can test for everything.

I mean they already have it to where strep cultures aren't grown in petri dishes anymore where you'll find out for sure that you have strep within the next 24 hours. Now it's a 5 minute test on a little pregnancy test type thing (I need to get my hands on some of those testing kits now that would save me many a trip to the doctor)

Nooo!!!! That finger prick thing hurts! I'd much rather have it taken out of my arm vein. Don't even feel that.

I will try not to be too opinionated in this post but I am old and not fond of change.

Today, we have more resources available when it comes to seeking care. I am open minded enough to realize they have their place, but they should not replace a real live physician, face to face, in all cases.

Sometimes we just need to know if something is serious enough to warrant immediate medical care OR if it can wait until the next day when we can see a medical professional.

Sometimes we just need some reassurance that some matters are NOT life-threatening.

There are many resources now where a patient can "call" for this advice or assistance.

From what I have heard, many times, these calls result in just being told, go to the ER.

I can understand that but I think it uses an ER in a manner for which the ER is not designed. No one wants to be held liable or responsible for deterring someone from immediate medical care based upon a telephone conversation they have with a patient. They really do not have a way of knowing the severity of the issue at hand. Therefore, the phone call usually ends with, go to the ER.

I don't want to get on my soap box here, but ER's as the name implies are for EMERGENCIES. They are not for things that can and should be handled by an urgent care facility, or an appt. with one's own doctor. I realize there are many times when something is URGENT and can't wait until one can see a doctor during office hours, but some of those things are also NOT an emergency. That is why urgent care facilities have come on the scene. I also understand not all areas have access to "urgent care" facilities which makes a trip to an ER, even for an non-emergency the only option a patient may have available to them.

Back to the topic,.....(I tend to go off-track at times.) Not ALL phone consultations end with go to the ER. The medical personnel taking the call, may be able to ask all the proper questions to rule out an emergency from a non-emergency, and advise the patient what steps they may take in the situation at hand. There IS a place for this service. But, it is just ONE tool in the toolbox.

For people with limited access to medical care or difficulty leaving their home, this may prove to be a valuable resource.

Some of these phone consultations are FREE and some have a fee for the service. BUT, there ARE limitations involved in what can be provided.

Feel free to disagree with this old foggy. Remember this comes from someone that has difficulty with change, especially in the health care industry.

Hi Starznight,

You make some very good points. This type of service has its place, but is only helpful in certain circumstances.

I would assume.....no, I would hope.....that anyone using the Internet doctor knows whether or not their situation is an emergency.

Doctor On Demand doesn't advertise using their service for emergencies.

But I am thankful for the service they offer. Going to the doctor's office will result in possibly sitting near someone with something contagious. I don't want or need any additional illnesses.

Like I said before I'm assuming most folks will have the sense to know whether or not their issue is an emergency. If you're not sure then err on the side of caution and go to the ER. They can determine if your case is urgent.

I didn't stop to think about that . I hate having my fingers pricked even with a tiny tailor's pin. Now stick a 14 gauge needle in my arm and suck out blood for all you're worth and I could care less

And I didn't mean to make it seem like I don't know when to go to the doctor for an emergency, it was more or less how something that appears inocculus at first healthwise can begin to escalate especially if given the wrong diagnosis in the first place. (Recent admission to the hospital is a good example, 10 days before my admittance I was told by the doctor that it was a pulled muscle, then because I had just done a urinalysis they opted to skip it and just rehydrate me the day before I was admitted to the hospital, then I went down with my kidneys shutting down and all kinds of issues except a fever!) And that was with doctors physically examining me. Imagine if it had been a doctor on the other side of the computer screen, who couldn't get any tests at all.

Hi Kitty,

I totally agree that "doctor on demand" type services are NOT for emergencies. That is what an emergency room is designed to handle.

Sometimes, some things are not so clear cut. There are times when a patient will not KNOW if something is an emergency or not. And yes, without being able to consult with someone in the medical field, one should err on the side of caution. But many times, a trip to an ER could be unwarranted.

I also agree that the less we expose ourselves to others that may be contagious, be that in a doctor's office, an ER, or even a hospital, the better off we may be getting care from the comfort of our home.

I was once chastised by a physician for not calling 911 with chest pain. Hey, if I had called 911 every time I had chest pain, I would have deep ruts in the street from the ambulance continually picking me up every few minutes or at least daily. I think I know the difference between angina that will subside and a heart attack that needs immediate medical care. I am the one feeling it. Might I also mention that this particular physician that chastised me, also said, that I had NO cardiac issues at the very same time.

How wrong he was on all counts. My cardiologist had a very different opinion. I also have nitro to use for angina. I have had cardiac issues long before this other doc declared my heart was fine and I was probably having indigestion, yet wanted me to call 911.

Now someone NOT familiar with angina that suddenly develops chest pain and no history of cardiac issues SHOULD call 911.

I have had a few occasions when my angina was not resolving and I was unsure if I needed to seek emergency care, but that is rarely the case.

Sometimes, whether urgent care or emergency care is needed is not always clear cut.

Several years ago, I woke from a very sound sleep with EXTREME pain in my arm. It was frightening to say the least. Was it a blood clot? Was my shoulder out of socket? What in the world was causing this terrible pain? I was just sleeping so how could this pain come out of the blue? It was the middle of the night and I did not want to call my doc and wake him. I had no one to ask. I was unable to drive myself to an ER. Was it even something that needed to be seen immediately? Should I call an ambulance? Could I hold on with this pain a few hours until office hours? I was frightened and alone. What should I do?

Long story short, I waited until 7:30 AM and called my doc. He said to come in and he would be at the office by the time I got there. He examined me, sent me for an MRI, but also gave me a shot to help with the pain. Was that the right thing for me to do? Don't know but it was the best solution for ME at the time. Everything worked out but it would have helped to have someone "on duty" to call, that I would not be waking in the middle of the night to help give me some guidance. This was long before we had someone to call.

If I had gone to the ER, they probably would have done the exact same thing as my doc did, and with the waiting times in the ER, I was probably seen sooner by my doc than I would have in the ER.

I have had my share of trips to an ER, but MOST of them have been for broken bones. I just consider them a place of last resort. Who feels like sitting in an ER waiting room when in so much pain? NOT me. I would rather be in the comfort of my home while I wait, when practical and non-emergent.

I think it is great that we have added resources now, each with their own place and limitations in treating various illnesses and conditions. I just think we need to choose which is the most appropriate for our needs at the time. Sometimes it is an ER, others only necessitate an urgent care facility, some a doctor's visit, some a phone call. There are many factors that go into which is right for an individual at the time. When in doubt, those phone calls we now have available to us can be very helpful in determining what is best.