Arkansas University Launches 24-Hour DTC Telehealth Program

Arkansas residents now have access to round-the-clock, non-acute care through a direct-to-consumer telehealth service launched by the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS).

The university has announced the launch of UAMS HealthNow, a connected health platform offering video access to UAMs-affiliated care providers for $55.

The service is available to almost all of the state’s 3 million residents and aims to address access issues in the primarily rural state, which is often ranked in the lower half in terms of unhealthy behaviors.

“Often effective treatment or preventing serious illness means responding to a patient’s symptoms soon after they appear,” Curtis Lowery, MD, who leads the UAMS Institute for Digital Health & Innovation, said in a press release. “Making it possible for a patient to consult with a UAMS nurse or physician through a live, internet video connection means being able to do that without significant delay. We’re removing yet another barrier to access.”

“Although UAMS already has long provided health care across Arkansas through its Regional Campuses and clinical programs, now that presence is around the clock and able to reach anyone in the state who can connect to the internet,” added UAMS Chancellor Cam Patterson, MD, MBA. “In many cases, we expect people in underserved rural areas may be able to avoid making a long, late-night drive to a hospital Emergency Department or waiting hours to see a physician.”

The DTC platform is becoming increasingly popular as health systems push to improve real-time access to care for consumers seeking treatment for a variety of issues, ranging from colds and viruses to infections and allergies. Earlier this month, Providence St. Joseph Health announced the launch of a similar platform, ExpressCare Virtual, to serve residents of Alaska, Washington, Oregon Montana and California.