Healow & TeleVisits

TeleVisits

In an effort to continue to provide you with the care you need safely, we are now offering televisits. This is a videoconference office visit with a provider.  If you have a computer with a camera or a smartphone, it is a simple click on a link to open the televisit.  To schedule a televisit, please call the office. When requesting an appointment through the Patient Portal, choose TeleVisit in the Visit Type selection box.  You will be able to access the televisit very simply from a link in the appointment confirmation email, through a reminder text, through the Patient Portal or through the Healow app on your smart phone or tablet.  If you experience any technical difficulties with the process, we will complete your visit by telephone.

We know many of you are concerned about getting needed follow up care due to pandemic concerns and are considering putting it off. This is understandable. But please know that it is even more important than ever  that you remain as healthy as possible, including keeping your chronic conditions well controlled and staying on your medications. We are your partner in that and hope televisits will add one more option for you to get the care you need safely and conveniently.

Please call the office at 919.846.9292 to schedule a TeleVisit appointment.

TeleVisit Instructions Using Computer:

  1. Call the office to make an appointment.
  2. You will need a smartphone or a computer with a web camera, microphone and internet browser (Chrome seems to work best but have also had success with Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer or Firefox).
  3. You will receive an email and/or text message to confirm your appointment 20 minutes before your appointment.  There will be a link in the email to click on that says "Join This Telemed Appointment directly" to start the TeleVisit.Notes: If unable to see the button in your email, be sure to click "Load all images" which may be at the top of your email. The link seems to work best with the Chrome browser.  If you have trouble connecting, you can copy and paste the link from your email appointment reminder into a Chrome browser window.  
  4. A screen will open asking you for your vital signs.  You may enter your temperature and blood pressure here if you have them but it is not necessary.  When finished, click the orange "Submit Vitals" button on the bottom left.
  5. The next page that will open is the System Compatibility Check.  This page checks your browser, speaker, camera, microphone, video connection and bandwidith.  If these are all compatible, there will be a green checkmark to the right of the item.  Click on the orange "Proceed" button on bottom left of page.  If there are red checkmarks you may not be able to use TeleVisit.  Please call the office to make arrangements to complete the visit on the telephone.
  6. On the next screen, click on the orange "Start Televisit" to enter the virtual waiting room. You will then see a message "Waiting for"  until whoever you have your appointment with joins the televisit.  Once the provider joins, you will be able to hear and see the provider in the larger window and will see yourself in the smaller window.
  7. If there is an issue with audio, there is a chat button at the bottom right of the screen that you may use to type a text message to the provider.  A red number will appear on that button if the provider sends you a text.
  8. To end the TeleVisit, click on the red phone button at the bottom of the screen.

TeleVisit Instructions Using Healow App on Smartphone:

Preparing for your TeleVisit using the Healow app:

  • Download the Healow app to your phone from the appropriate link to the right.
  • Use our code - AHGDAA - to link the app with our practice.
  • Log into the app using your Patient Portal settings (same settings you may have used to view your lab results on our Patient Portal website).  If you have trouble with this, please call the office and we can reset your username and/or password.

Download App to your Smartphone:

Access appointment from Healow app on your smartphone:

  1. Open the Healow app on your smartphone.
  2. On the wheel screen, tap Appointments section which will be red if you have an upcoming appointment.
  3. Tap the appointment on the next screen.
  4. Tap the orange "Start Televisit" at the bottom of the screen.
  5. If you have vital signs such as blood pressure or temperature available, you may enter these values in the next screen.  This is not necessary if you do not have these.
  6. Tap "Submit Vitals" (even if you have not entered any).
  7. Tap "Start Televist" on next screen.
  8. You are checked in.  Wait for your provider to connect.
  9. If asked by your computer or phone, allow access to camera & microphone.
  10. When provider joins the televisit on their end, you will be able to see and hear the provider.  If there is difficulty with this, there is a chat button on the bottom of the screen where you can type a message.  Be sure that your microphone is turned on and your volume is turned up.

TeleVisit FAQ's

Will my insurance pay for this?

Many insurances including Medicare, Medicaid, United, Cigna, Aetna, Humana and BCBS have removed restrictions for televisits meaning they will now pay for them during this pandemic period. We expect other insurance companies to update their policies soon as well. If you want to do a televisit and your insurance isn’t paying for them yet, give us a call and we can give you an idea of the cost.

What if I don't have a smartphone or a computer with video?

Please call the office and we can arrange the same appointment to be done by phone.

What if my computer says it's unsupported or another error message?

In our experience, connecting to a televisit by using the link in the confirmation email or text has worked well on a smartphone or  when using the Chrome internet browser on your computer.  Please be patient with us as we are a medical practice, not a computer tech company and have limited ability to troubleshoot issues with connecting.  If the televisit connection does not go as planned, we will complete the office visit on the telephone.