The Mexican Institute of Social Security (IMSS) in Sinaloa, enabled telemedicine services to continue with the care of patients who cannot attend a consultation in person.
Manuel Alejandro González Fernández, in charge of the auxiliary coordination of the First Level of Attention of the IMSS Sinaloa, explained that the telemedicine services have three modalities: the attention of doctors from other parts of the country to patients from Sinaloa, the digital consultation; and monitoring of outpatients with COVID-19.
"The first modality is the one where High Specialty Medical Units (UMAE) intervene, where specialized care is offered by doctors from other parts of the country to patients from Sinaloa," explained the coordinator.
On the other hand, the digital consultation is focused on following up on people who, mainly for reasons of transfer to their Family Medicine Unit (FMU), cannot attend a face-to-face consultation. For them, a video call is made with the doctors at the UMF.
And finally, telemonitoring care is available by telephone to assess the evolution of outpatients who are undergoing treatment for COVID-19 or recovering from the disease.
González Fernández, informed that through the first modality, an average of 20 patients are treated monthly; the digital consultation provides about 560 visits per week and follow-ups for COVID-19 have registered up to 3,000 patients in one week.
