Virtual Care: Choosing the Right Tool, at the Right Time

When the immediate threat of COVID-19 subsides, the future of health care will involve more virtual care. Before the pandemic, patient choice rather than clinician guidance determined which medium (telephone visits, video visits, electronic messaging) was used to receive care. Two media synchronicity theory principles-conveyance and convergence-can create a framework for determining how to choose the right medium of care for the patient. The author describes how it changed their practice and decision making with a patient story that required the use of multiple virtual care options.