Telemedicine uses telecommunications technology to provide clinical care to patients at a distance.  Memorial Hospital of Carbon County is registered with the Wyoming Telehealth Network to bring patients and providers together.  This delivery method is essential for moving healthcare closer to patients and meeting the need to expand care.  Telehealth allows rural hospitals and clinics to provide more specialty services while lowering costs and improving continuity of care.

To learn more about Telehealth Services at Memorial Hospital of Carbon County, we invite you to call the hospital at 307-324-2221 or the MHCC Family Practice Clinic at 307-324-8494.

Benefits of Telehealth

Everyone can benefit from telehealth:

Patients

  • Allows patients to stay in local communities while accessing care
  • Improves health outcomes
  • Reduces costs:
    • Lowers travel costs and missed work / school
    • Fewer emergency room and repeated hospitals visits
    • Allows for consultation with specialists without added visits or travel
  • Hospitalized patients can stay in their home community while still receiving quality care
  • Patients are less likely to sacrifice care due to higher costs and time
  • Improves patient-centered care

Community Benefits

  • Expanded healthcare services create a better community
  • Increases community revenue by keeping patients local

Virtual Appointments are Now Available!

In an effort to help our patients, Memorial Hospital of Carbon County is now offering virtual visits for certain services!

At this time many insurance carriers are presently waiving co-pays for telemedicine services, so please check with your carrier to see if this applies to you.

All you need for your virtual appointment is a smart device with phone calling capabilities. When you call for an appointment, we will walk you through the steps for your virtual visit. It’s quick, simple, and you will be able to see and hear your favorite provider from the comfort of
your own home!

Please call the hospital at 307-324-2221 or the MHCC Family Practice Clinic at  307-324-8494 for more information!

Telestroke Services

Memorial Hospital of Carbon County is the newest location to join Wyoming Medical Center’s Telestroke Program.

Telemedicine is a rapidly growing field and one that compliments rural areas such as Wyoming very well.  This service provides access to specialists and technological advances that otherwise would not be possible in small hospitals.  The partnership with Wyoming Medical Center allows us to build a system of care that can overcome geographic barriers and maximize the critical time frames involved with stroke cases.

EMS Staff are now able to begin a pre-hospital/triage stroke assessment that activates a Code Stroke within the MHCC Emergency Room to initiate patient treatment immediately.  Patient history, vitals and CT Scans are relayed virtually and allows the neurologist to be involved early and streamline treatment.

Please call the hospital at 307-324-2221 for more information!

Telepsych Services

At qlēr Solutions, we believe in expanding access to high quality psychiatric care through the use of technology and a flexible model where facilities pay for the clinical services they need.  No more.  No less.  No waste.

Memorial Hospital is proud to announce the implementation of tele-psychiatry for our Emergency Room patients through a partnership with qlēr solutions.

Benefits:

For the Patient: Rapid access to clinical specialists; high quality care delivered by board certified psychiatrists for adult, geriatric and pediatric patients.

For the Community:  Access to psychiatric care in a variety of settings; delivered by a dedicated team focused on continuity of care

Our tele-psychiatry care addresses the massive shortfall in access to behavioral healthcare across the US.

Please call the hospital at 307-324-2221 for more information!

This service is currently available to Emergency Room patients only. For non-emergent needs, we encourage you to contact the MHCC Family Practice Clinic in Rawlins at 307-324-8494 to schedule an appointment with Joanne Reints, Licensed Professional Counselor.

Tele-Psychiatry Overview

Introducing Memorial Hospital of Carbon County’s new Psychiatrists!

Telehealth FAQ

Telemedicine uses telecommunications technology to provide clinical care to patients at a distance. This can take the form of real-time video visits, remote patient monitoring, or store and forward.

This is determined by each individual provider. Some telehealth providers in Wyoming require the first visit to be in-person, while others do not. The establishment of a patient-provider relationship via telemedicine is not prohibited in Wyoming.

Insurance reimbursement varies.  In many cases, payers will reimburse, and often at the same rate as an in-person visit.  Each payer has different policies for reimbursement, which update frequently, so please check with each payer you work with to understand their rules and policies.

Wyoming Medicaid currently reimburses telehealth visits at the same rate as in-person visits.

Videoconferencing software is designed to be easy to use.  Patients and providers with a basic familiarity of online apps should be able to quickly figure out how to use a telehealth application.  For more assistance, training and technical support are available at no cost through the WyTN.

Yes, but only when it is conducted using an encrypted platform that was designed for that purpose. The no-cost Zoom platform available through the WyTN is HIPAA-secure and is commonly used throughout the U.S for telehealth. Be aware that certain consumer apps like Facetime and Skype may not be secure enough for telemedicine visits.

While telehealth technologies are secure, it is the responsibility of the health care provider to ensure that they are meeting security requirements.  This includes maintaining a Business Associate Agreement with all technology providers.

As long as providers maintain their standard of care, the quality of a telehealth encounter is the same as an in-person visit. Providers can effectively conduct a number of services over telehealth, including: assessing patient wellbeing (mental status, pain level, and physical symptoms), conducting clinical histories, consulting with specialty providers, and identifying if the patient needs in-person care.

Limitations do exist, so it is up to the provider to use their best judgment.  Telehealth is a tool to facilitate the delivery of health care, not a replacement for traditional medicine.

At minimum, patients and providers need a computer, laptop, or mobile device with a camera, microphone, and speaker. A decent internet connection is needed at both ends of the telehealth encounter. Ideally, speeds should be at least 15 Mbps download and 5 Mbps upload, but there are no set rules. Video streaming can occur with slower speeds but these speeds will provide a clearer video experience.

This is based on the comfort level and technological capabilities of each provider.  Some of the more common conditions treated by telehealth include: allergic reactions, cold/flu, cough, diarrhea, pink eye, sinus infection, sore throat, rash, vomiting, and other general illnesses.

Another use for telehealth is medication management, as telehealth can have significant impact on medication adherence. Additionally, chronic care management and follow-up appointments can be efficiently conducted via telehealth since the provider is already aware the patient’s condition.

Telehealth has many benefits for patients, providers, healthcare facilities, and communities.  Simply put, telehealth improves access to treatment, continuity of care, and overall health outcomes, all at reduced costs.

Learn About Phreesia

Phreesia gives healthcare organizations a suite of applications to manage the patient intake process, including mobile registration. Mobile check-in allows you to complete pre-visit registration from your own device (any smartphone, computer, or tablet) ahead of time and in the privacy of your home.

MHCC is partnering with Phreesia to save you time when arriving at our practice and to ensure that your health records will always be up-to-date. The information you enter is private and secure and will allow our team to better care for you.

Yes. Phreesia provides industry-leading privacy and security for our patients’ data. They are held to the same standards as MHCC related to protecting your family’s information. For additional information about Phreesia’s security visit https://www.phreesia.com/patient-privacy.

Yes. But once you have completed the initial registration, the next time will be much quicker because Phreesia saves your answers.

No. There is no app—you simply click the link provided in the text message or email. This allows you to securely answer any registration and medical questions necessary for your appointment.

Yes! Mobile registration is available in 20 different languages, and the PhreesiaPads in the office offer Spanish in addition to English.

That’s okay! If you have not completed your registration before the visit, see one of our receptionists, and they will be happy to send you a new link. Don’t worry, Phreesia saves information you entered previously.