General Guidelines:
Physicians :
Given the constraints of remote visits, physicians are inherently limited in the amount of information that can be conveyed to them through video or audio. Obtaining patient history and understanding subjective patient complaints should remain ascertainable following a comprehensive and detailed conversation between the two parties. Physical exam findings, however, are understandably more difficult to obtain in a remote visit. Physicians may often have patients perform rudimentary aspects of a physician exam on themselves and describe their observations in detail to the physician. Given the lack of expertise among the majority of patients, physicians should promptly convey their expectations for the visit and possible tasks they might have patients perform. Distribution of the graphic handouts prior to the virtual visit can allow patients to adequately prepare for the visits. This ensures that the visit is as fruitful as possible and that time is not spent having the physician explain a task without context during a visit. Recommendations and expectations for patients are further discussed below (see Figure 1).