We’re not surprised at all when we hear about people feeling like they’re stuck in limbo when it comes to knowing what they should do, how they should do it and when. We’re living in a very unique time in history right now and this level of uncertainty has touched every aspect of our lives, including how we access healthcare.
We’ve chatted with many other clinics and independent healthcare providers and here’s our take on some of the reasons why some people were initially hesitant to book virtual appointments:
Adjustment of priorities
When the pandemic first hit, people's first priority was figuring out how to manage working from home, caring for their children at home, providing education for their children, etc. As those core life requirements became everyone’s priority, and took up the bulk of our time, other areas of our lives took a back seat. Things like taking care of our own health and well-being got put on the back burner. This became even more evident in people who might have considered taking action and booking some sort of healthcare appointment before the pandemic but had no existing relationship with a healthcare provider. Referencing Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, we were all trying to reestablish our basic needs (the bottom of the pyramid) before we thought about anything else.
(Ref. https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html)
We’re in this for the long haul
We often talk about managing expectations when we deal with people in our personal and professional lives and the pandemic is no exception. Many people thought that the lockdowns and other restrictions to our daily lives would only last a few weeks and they took the holding pattern approach; they were content to wait it out and have their in-person appointments when things reopened. While things are reopening now, albeit in limited capacities, they are reopening to a new version of what they once were and it’s very different than before.
Technology adoption
As with any new trend or phenomenon, especially new technologies, there are innovators (2.5%), early adopters (13.5%) , early majority (34%), late majority (34%), and laggards (16%).
(Ref. https://www.ou.edu/deptcomm/dodjcc/groups/99A2/theories.htm)
The current rate of technology adoption is definitely quicker than normal, out of sheer necessity. The barriers to usage of these communication technologies are much lower due to the ease of usability for the related hardware and software. Plus, we can’t ignore the value of jumping in with two feet … we didn’t really have an option; either adapt or don’t see your friends and family.