Virtual care appointments at St. Joseph’s - information for patients

1. Virtual Care
   What is virtual care?
   Why is St. Joseph’s offering virtual care?
   Is virtual care right for me or my loved one?
2. Your Virtual Care Appointment
   How will my appointment be booked?
   What to expect during your appointment
   What you’ll need for your appointment
   How to prepare for your appointment
   Need help with your video healthcare appointment?
3. Privacy and Security
   Privacy and security content
   Email consent and safety
   Protecting your privacy
4. Questions and Feedback
   Virtual Care Patient Experience Survey
   Technical support
   Questions about virtual care

About Virtual Care

1. What is virtual care?
Virtual care is a broad term for health care that is provided remotely using some form of technology.

A virtual care appointment is an appointment with your health care provider that occurs in real time over telephone or video conference using your smartphone, tablet, or computer device.

Virtual care can include: 

• telephone health care appointments
• video health care appointments
• non-urgent communication with your health care provider using secure messaging tools (ex: patient portal)
• using digital technology to monitor patient vitals remotely

2. Why is St. Joseph's offering virtual care?

Virtual care is not new. St. Joseph’s and care teams across Ontario have been using virtual care for many years.

Virtual care offers many benefits, including: 

• Reduced travel expenses such as gas and parking costs 
• Less time spent driving, parking and waiting in hospital  
• Increased access for those living in rural and remote communities 
• Increased accessibility for people with mobility or sensory processing challenges 
• Less exposure to infections and germs 
• Potential for increased family members and support person participation  
• Environmental benefits such as reduced carbon emissions and fossil fuel usage  

Did you know: More than 6,000 individuals have completed the Virtual Care Patient Experience Survey to provide feedback:

• 91 per cent of respondents were satisfied or very satisfied with their virtual care appointment.
• 76 per cent of respondents were likely or very likely to choose to receive care virtually again where appropriate.  

3. Is virtual care right for me or my loved one?

There are many options for trying virtual care. Talk to your health care provider to let them know how you feel and what you prefer.

Some of the factors that help determine whether virtual care is appropriate include:

• Whether or not a physical exam is required 
• If a procedure needs to be completed in the hospital 
• If the patient has good internet connection or telephone service 
• If the patient has access to a computer, tablet, or smart phone 

You and your care provider will decide together if virtual care is appropriate and the right option for you.

Did you know: Your health care provider can add your virtual care preferences to your health care record. Ask your provider today.

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About your Virtual Care Appointment

How will my virtual care appointment be booked?
Your virtual care appointment will be booked similarly to how you care provider would book an in-person appointment. Your care team may call, email, or send a letter in the mail with appointment information.

Please contact your care team directly if you have any questions about the type of appointment you have been booked for.

Did you know: Interpretation services are available for virtual visits. Let your care team know before your appointment if you need an interpreter.

What to expect during your virtual care appointment

Telephone 

• Your care provider will call you on the telephone for your appointment 

• You may be given a range of times when your care provider may call you.
  For example: between 1 pm – 3 pm
•  If you have call display, the call may appear from 
  • A full St. Joseph’s Health Care London phone number (for example: 519-646-6100)
  • ‘St. Joseph’s Health Care London’
  • An ‘Unknown Caller’

Tip: check to make sure that your phone ringer is not on silent

Video conference

• You will receive an email with the appointment link in advance 
• It is a good idea to test the audio and video prior to the appointment to ensure things run smoothly on the day of your appointment.
• For technical support with Webex Virtual Care Appointments, contact 1 519-685-8390 Monday to Friday, 8 am – 5 pm
• For technical support with OTN Virtual Care Appointments, contact 1-855-654-0888, Monday to Friday, 7 am – 6 pm
• Your health care provider may not join the appointment exactly at the scheduled start time. Please contact your care team directly for updates.

What you’ll need for your appointment
Taking a few minutes in advance to prepare is the best way to ensure you get the most out of your virtual care appointment. 

What you’ll need:

• A fully charged-device (tablet, computer, telephone or smartphone) with a camera, microphone and speaker (video appointments)
• Internet connection that’s reliable and password-protected
• Your valid Ontario Health Card or equivalent
• A list of your current medications, or have your medication bottles with you
• Name and address of your current pharmacy
• Any communication aids you need, for example: reading glasses, hearing aids
• List of questions for your health care provider and paper/pen to take notes

Did you know: You can include a family member or other support person(s) in your video appointments by forwarding them the email with the link

How to prepare for your appointment

• Make sure your technology is set up properly. For telephone appointments, ensure your ringer is on. For video appointments, ensure your device privacy settings allow access to your camera and microphone.  
• Go to a private, well-lit, quiet place, if possible. If you would like a family member or support person to be with you during the appointment, send them the emailed appointment or have them in the room with you.
  • For video appointments: try to join the video appointment 15 minutes early. If you are running late for the appointment, please contact the clinic to let them know you still plan to attend. Note: Your health care provider may join the appointment after the start time.
  • For telephone appointments: Your provider may not phone you at the exact appointment start time. Please keep your phone close to you to monitor for the incoming call.

Need help with your video healthcare appointment?

To cancel or reschedule your appointment, please contact the clinic directly. If you would like technical support including testing your device, learn how to join a session or practice a video call you can phone 519-685-8390 (Monday to Friday, 8 am - 4 pm, excluding observed holidays).

Book a free technical support session
You can also book a free technical support session by sending an email to @email.

Resources to Support your video healthcare appointment

• Patient and caregiver guide to virtual care appointments
• How to Join Webex Appointments (video)
• Webex online resources

What to expect during your appointment

• Your health care provider will confirm your personal information and explain what to expect during the appointment. 
• Tell your provider if you are experiencing any technical difficulties during the appointment and have the care team phone number on hand to contact for troubleshooting if needed. If a new or refill prescription is recommended your doctor can send the prescription directly to your pharmacy for pickup.

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Privacy and Security

Privacy and Security:

Your privacy is very important to us. Like any in-person visit, we do our best to make sure any information you give to us during a virtual care appointment is private and secure.

Electronic communication, including virtual care appointments and email, may have an increased risk that your health information is intercepted by third parties through malware, phishing scams or other unauthorized access.

The video conferencing platforms that St. Joseph's uses (Webex, OTN) are verified solutions through Ontario Health that meet a standard for privacy, security, technology, and functionality.

Click for more information about Verified Solutions for Virtual Visits

Personal health information discussed during the virtual care appointment is not stored or kept by OTN or Webex Meetings. Calls and video are not recorded or kept by OTN or Webex Meetings after your appointment finishes.  

St. Joseph’s is not responsible for the security of patients’ internet service providers, email domains, personal devices or personal computer.

To help us keep your information secure, please consider the following:

• Choose a private place for your virtual appointment
• Use your personal email address
• Use a secure internet connection

Email consent and safety

• Consent to email communication is required for virtual care video appointments
• Your care team may also send appointment or other general information by email if you have consented to receiving information this way
• Some care areas may send you a follow-up survey by email after your appointment. This will help us improve the quality of care we deliver. If you receive an email and survey link and aren’t sure if it’s coming from your health care team, call your provider to confirm before clicking on any links. 

• For more information about communicating with your care team by email, please visit St. Joseph's webpage about email communication.  

Protecting your privacy

Your privacy is very important to St. Joseph’s. We protect your privacy during virtual care appointments in the same way we do during an in-person visit. Only the people providing care to you will be present during your appointment. The discussion during the virtual appointment is documented in your health record, just like an in-person appointment would be.

We suggest you take similar steps to protect your own privacy. This means being aware of your surroundings and who may be able to overhear your virtual appointment.

If you have any questions about your privacy and confidentiality, please contact Patient Relations, Privacy and Risk at 519 646-6100 ext. 65591 or via email at @email 

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Questions and Feedback

Virtual Care Patient Experience Survey
The Virtual Care Program is working to continuously improve how our hospital delivers virtual care. If you’ve had a telephone or video health care appointment at St. Joseph’s recently, we want to hear from you.  Please take 5-10 minutes to complete our Virtual Care Patient Experience Survey.

Your participation is voluntary and your responses are anonymous. Your feedback will help us understand how we can continue to improve the experience for our patients and their family members, and improve our services. Thank you for your time. 

Technical Support

• For technical support with Webex Virtual Care Appointments contact 519 685-8390 Monday to Friday, 8 am – 5 pm
• For technical support with OTN Virtual Care Appointments contact 1-855-654-0888, Monday to Friday, 7am – 6pm

Questions about virtual care
Please speak with your care team if you are interested in trying virtual care or have questions about whether it is appropriate for your unique circumstance.

Concerns about your virtual care experience
Please contact the Patient Relations Office if you have any concerns about your virtual care experience.

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