Tap a button on your smartphone’s screen, and in just minutes, you’re in a one-on-one video appointment with a health care professional.
Through Novant Health’s virtual on-demand visits, caring experts are available online 24/7 – no appointment needed. All you need is an internet-connected device, like your phone or laptop.
Virtual care, also known as video visits, telemedicine or telehealth, is revolutionizing the landscape of health care by increasing convenience, accessibility and equity. While virtual care gained footing during the COVID-19 pandemic, many embrace it as a long-term improvement to their quality of care, much more than a temporary emergency solution.
Access the care you need in minutes with an on-demand video visit.
When the demands of life, like work, child care and transportation, make it difficult or even impossible to seek medical care in person, Novant Health’s on-demand visits put care at your fingertips. On-demand visits are available to all patients in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia, and are covered by medical insurance, too, just as an in-person visit would be with your standard copay.
“Our services are so useful and helpful,” said Lisa Rutherford, a family nurse practitioner who’s been seeing patients on-demand virtually since 2022. “It's a great thing people can utilize to connect with a provider and get treatment without taking as much time out of their day.”
How on-demand video visits work
On-demand video visits are quick and convenient. Anyone from kids (accompanied by an adult) to grandparents can use them.
There are six simple steps to using Novant Health’s on-demand care:
- Log into MyChart or create an account.
- From the main menu, select Start On-Demand Video Visit
- Confirm your location in NC, SC or VA
- Get paired to an on-demand Novant Health care team member
- Start video visit and share your symptoms and concerns
- Receive a personalized treatment plan and/or prescriptions
For those who may be tech-hesitant, Rutherford said, don’t worry.
“We have a great team that provides a lot of extra support for patients to be able to connect,” she said. “Or nurses call patients all the time to help walk them through it.”
Rutherford said that many conditions people seek help for through on-demand care can be diagnosed through the virtual visit. These conditions may include:
- Cold/cough/flu/COVID-19 symptoms
- Sore throat
- Back pain
- Rash and skin conditions
- Urinary tract infection
Some conditions may require a follow-up in-person visit with a doctor. In this case, Rutherford said, she will provide a referral to a nearby Novant Health medical center or clinic. And, she added, it’s fine to use on-demand care if you don’t know whether you need an in-person visit.
“If you just want to get some medical advice about whether you do need to be seen in person, you can start here and we can always refer you to primary care, urgent care or to a specialist,” she said.
Lifesaving care on demand
Recently, Rutherford virtually met with a patient who needed in-person care immediately – but he had no idea.
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The man began his on-demand visit because he thought he was suffering from a migraine headache, Rutherford explained. The father of two young children had awakened the day before with neck pain, and later while driving, he noticed that vision in his left eye was altered. The symptoms were out of the ordinary for him, as someone who did not typically experience migraine headaches, Rutherford soon learned from their conversation.
“He mentioned that he went to work, but halfway through the day he wasn't feeling well. He kept saying, ‘I just felt weird, I didn't feel normal,’” Rutherford explained. When he couldn’t shake the “off” feeling and noticed part of his field of vision was missing the next day, he clicked “start on-demand visit” and connected.
Rutherford’s response: “We’re going to stop right there, and you need to get to the emergency room right now.”
What she recognized was that the headache and missing spot in his field of vision were signs the man had suffered a stroke. Rutherford’s nursing team notified his nearby hometown hospital, Novant Health Huntersville Medical Center, that he was on his way, so that he could be screened, diagnosed and treated for a stroke immediately upon his arrival.
“I’m just so happy he connected,” Rutherford said. Thanks to on-demand care, she could provide a lifeline when this patient critically needed it.
