Telemedicine changes the way we ‘doctor’

In previous generations, people often used the word “doctor” as a verb, and in a unique way that continues in some parts of rural America. It’s just not nearly as prevalent as it was a few decades ago.

Rural people sometimes say they “doctor” in bigger cities like Bismarck and Sioux Falls. Often, rural folks doctor in smaller, nearby towns – places like Northwood, N.D., or Wessington Springs, S.D. –that still have a hospital or clinic.

A quick check of online dictionaries shows few instances of that usage. MerriamWebster makes a brief reference, simply by calling it “dialect.”

But we have heard it much in years past and still do now and then today. For many in rural America, “doctoring” means making a trip to another town specifically for regular medical care.

Doctoring, in this sense, also can affect how people decide where they will pick up supplies or purchase a set of tires, or – if services are a great distance –whether they will choose to see a doctor at all.

So imagine what can happen as telemedicine takes root in the region, riding the wings of technological advances that would have seemed far-fetched not long ago.

In this month’s edition of Prairie Business, reporter Sam Easter digs into how medicine is changing in the age of the internet. He writes that doctors are more often coming together – digitally, not necessarily physically – to collaboratively diagnose illnesses.

And technology is making it more personal for the patient, too. Tyto Care is a home device equipped with a camera, tongue depressor and thermometer, allowing doctors to remotely examine patients. In some cases, these devices make it so a doctor never actually sees the patient in person, but is still able to make a diagnosis and prescribe the appropriate medication from miles away.

A doctor from Sioux Falls-based Sanford says the innovations are transforming the profession. Another doctor – from Altru, in Grand Forks – says the past four or five years have seen a dramatic increase in telemedicine.

The advances could help ease problems associated with a regionwide doctor shortage. Much of rural America is greatly underserved, and without much hope for change. The problem is acute in the Dakotas.

So as we hear that telemedicine is taking root, we can’t help but get excited about its potential to help cure all sorts of ills – both literally and figuratively.

Telemedicine could reduce the threat that comes with a shortage of healthcare professionals in rural areas. It could ease the inconvenience of lost time for rural residents who in the past have traveled great distances to see the healthcare professionals that are concentrated in the larger towns and cities. It could keep rural residents closer to home, saving them money and potentially eliminating the urge to purchase their supplies in other towns.

And, most important, telemedicine could be a lifesaver to a patient who otherwise does not have quick access to a medical professional.

“Doctor” – in the sense of traveling to a regular health appointment – is an oldfashioned verb that likely will fall out of America’s lexicon. It’ll be a shame to see that endearing verb go extinct, and especially on the cusp of an era when people literally can say they “doctor” in their own tiny hometown or, perhaps, even in their own front parlor.

Korrie Wenzel has been publisher of Prairie Business since 2014.

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Prairie Business magazine is published monthly by the Grand Forks Herald and Forum Communications Company with offices at 375 2nd Avenue North, Grand Forks, ND 58203. Subscriptions are available free of charge. Back issue quantities are limited and subject to availability ($2/copy prepaid). The opinions of writers featured in Prairie Business are their own. Unsolicited manuscripts, photographs, artwork are encouraged but will not be returned without a self-addressed, stamped envelope.

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