New UAMS HealthNow Offers 24/7 Digital Health, Live Video Access to Convenient Care
| Starting today through UAMS HealthNow, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) has begun providing 24-hour, digital health access to convenient, real-time care for Arkansas patients using the internet through mobile devices or computers.
Arkansas patients at any time can connect via live video and see UAMS expert health care providers who offer a wide range of personalized care online. The cost is $55, which is due at the time of service.
Stacy Petty, APRN, right, demonstrates the live, patient-to-provider video connection that is a central feature of UAMS HealthNow.
UAMS has priced its convenient care to cost the same as or less than other providers of online or in-person urgent care. UAMS HealthNow will not bill insurance, but some insurers will reimburse patients who file directly with them for it. To access UAMS HealthNow, visit uamshealth.com/healthnow.
Unlike some other health care providers who provide similar services through out-of-state, third party contractors, UAMS is making its providers available directly. That means better continuity of care for patients who later need to be treated or to have lab work done on the main campus or at a UAMS clinic.
“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,” said UAMS Chancellor Cam Patterson, M.D., 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.”
Although less than a year old, the UAMS Institute for Digital Health & Innovation continues to push technology to bring care closer to home. Curtis Lowery, M.D., leads the institute, and his vision has nurtured digital health applications in Arkansas over the last 30 years.
“Often effective treatment or preventing serious illness means responding to a patient’s symptoms soon after they appear,” Lowery said. “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.”