National Virtual Clinic has Added HIPAA-compliant texting to Help Move Rheumatology Patients Into Remission Status, and Keep Them in Remission

RICHMOND, Va., May 10, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Remission Medical, the largest national virtual clinic offering diagnosis and longitudinal care in Rheumatology, powered by video visits and a technology platform focused on escalation avoidance, is now in its third year.

"A big learning we've had since our founding in 2022 is that not every patient issue rises to the level of a video visit," said Kyle Harner, MD, Chief Medical Officer of Remission Medical. "We've found that a timely answer to a text from a patient, often relating to one or more of their medications, is a tangible difference maker in terms of outcomes."

According to the CDC, some one in four US adults have a rheumatic condition, especially arthritis, which is characterized by joint pain and stiffness. Rheumatic disease can affect quality of life, both at home and work, and can be hard to diagnose, given there are some 150 disease varieties.

"We knew wait times to see a Rheumatologist for diagnosis and longitudinal care were very long in America," said Blake Wehman, Founder & CEO of Remission Medical. "But we've learned it's actually the days out, and also the miles to drive. Patients typically wait 90 days or more for an appointment, and so often drive 90 miles or more. Rural patients are more likely than not in Rheumatology Deserts. So we crafted our Navigation Service to require no wait, and no driving."

The RemissionNavigation offering is cash-pay, or otherwise offered through Remission Medical's partners, whereby insurance is accepted. It allows for not just swift video visits, but also texting between the patient and Remission Medical's rheumatology providers (doctors, nurse practitioners and physician assistants), and is 24/7. 

"RemissionNavigator is not health coaching," said Bhavika Amin, NP, Chief Clinical Officer of Remission Medical. "Patient text messages are answered by seasoned Rheumatology providers who are either board-certified Rheumatologists or Rheumatology-focused Advanced Practice Providers (APPs), who work very closely together as a dyad to take care of autoimmune patients of all types."

RemissionNavigator was inspired by the fact that CMS recently enabled Principal Illness Navigation (PIN) codes, thanks to a successful CMMI grant focused on supporting oncology patients on their complex journeys towards remission. PIN codes are a major big step forward for complex disease treatment in America.

Telehealth has embarked on a new chapter focused on specialty use cases, where in conjunction with in-person care, the most value is unlocked. The RemissionNavigator solution empowers the patient and the provider both. "It's not always a lab test or a prescription that needs to be ordered. Those are transactions within the healthcare experience and are accessible in traditional modes. But a significant portion of a patient's journey to low disease activity or remission should occur outside the four walls of a medical office, where texting can be effective and efficient," said Blake Wehman, CEO of Remission Medical and proud Remission Medical patient himself.

Remission Medical partners with hospital systems nationwide to speed Time to Diagnosis (TTD) and Time to Treatment Initiation (TTI) in Rheumatic Disease, and is based in Richmond, Virginia.

About Remission Medical
Remission Medical is a national virtual rheumatology clinic addressing the full range of rheumatological conditions including Rheumatoid Arthritis, Osteoporosis, Osteoarthritis, Lupus, and Gout, among others. Remission Medical's providers include state-licensed, board-certified rheumatologists, physician assistants and nurse practitioners with deep expertise in all autoimmune inflammatory conditions.

And Remission Medical is a technology-enabled services rheumatology provider. Built from the ground up for value-based care and value-based benefits, the company's proprietary platform leverages the power of PRO and generative AI to optimize care pathways and care cadences.

PRESS CONTACT for Remission Medical:

Blake Wehman - blake@remissionmedical.com - www.remissionmedical.com

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SOURCE Remission Medical