GLENS FALLS — This was going to be the year Hudson Headwaters Health Network started offering telemedicine.

Maybe.

“There was some discussion about looking into it,” Hudson Headwaters Chief Medical Informatics Officer Dr. Kevin Gallagher said. “It was really in its infancy.”

But then the coronavirus hit, and the health network set it up in one week. It then spent two weeks testing it with a few patients before going live for everyone last week.

As of April 16, patients can now schedule a telemed appointment online through the network’s website. The site also has detailed instructions on how to download the program needed for videoconferencing. But it’s fairly easy: after signing up for an appointment, they are emailed a link, which includes a download of the program. The program also reminds them that the appointment is coming up, and at the right time it asks them to click on it so that they can connect with their doctor.

“Patients have been very appreciative. Their ability to have a conversation and see their provider and have their questions answered has given them a lot of reassurance,” Gallagher said. “Some patients are still down in Florida for the winter and can’t leave Florida and need a follow-up visit.”

After a video visit with him, he can order them prescription refills. During the visit, he can check on chronic conditions. While many issues depend on medical equipment, people often have it. Diabetics can tell him what their home glucose readings are, and those with hypertension often have their own blood pressure cuffs. When he knows their current readings, he can adjust their medication.

It has also been very easy to do medical checks for people with depression and anxiety, he said. They are often seen every three to six months, which can add up when they must take time off from work.

Now, essential workers are able to take a quick break and meet with him via video, he said.

“We couldn’t have done that without telehealth,” Gakkagher said.

Doctors have wanted to offer videoconferencing for years. The problem was not technology, but rules.

Insurance companies wouldn’t pay them as much as they are paid for a face-to-face visit. And the federal government wouldn’t allow videoconferencing unless it was both encrypted, which many programs like FaceTime are, and also recorded for audit purposes, which FaceTime cannot do.

The pandemic changed all of that.

“They said it’s time it take all these regulations and put it on pause,” Gallagher said. “My hope is that this has accelerated the process for us to be able to adopt this type of health care delivery.”

In other words, he’s hoping those rules don’t return.

Patients are benefiting too. Many health insurance companies are offering to waive all copays and deductibles for telemedicine during the pandemic. That makes it easier for them to try it out, if they’re not sure that it will work.

Some illnesses still require an in-person visit. Hudson Headwaters is doing about half of its appointments in person. Children who need vaccines, for example, should still come to the office. Ear infections require a close look, too.

“There are certain acute conditions that you absolutely need to be able to do an exam on to confidently treat on,” Gallagher said.

Often, cases often involving pain, injury or difficulty breathing need an in-person appointment. Staff are watching the telemed appointment requests closely and contact patients who cite those issues in the “reason for appointment” box.

But Gallagher said there was no harm in having a telemed visit to talk out those concerns.

“The outcome of that visit may be, ‘This is appropriate to see you in the office,'” he said. “And then we get you in today or tomorrow. I think there is incredible value in doing the video visit.”

One of the benefits: People don’t put off medical care just because they’re trying to avoid the virus.

In the future, when people are not trying to avoid an infectious virus, telemed will likely not be used for physicals. Doctors want to do those in person.

But for now, they’re recommending that those be postponed in most cases.

Some doctors have done them over video for children. Now that schools are closed until at least May 15, there’s no harm in waiting.

“Maybe the physical exam portion could be deferred to after this COVID crisis,” Gallagher said.