Newswise — DALLAS – Sept. 25, 2017 – Hurricane evacuees living in Texas now can have free access to an ER physician via a video and text messaging app from CirrusMD through UT Southwestern Medical Center’s Texas Docs Care program.
“As Houston continues to recover from Hurricane Harvey, we know some areas won’t be easily accessible and some doctors’ offices will likely be closed for some time, but medical needs still must be met,” said Dr. Deborah Diercks, Chairman of Emergency Medicine at UT Southwestern, who holds the Audre and Bernard Rapoport Distinguished Chair in Clinical Care and Research. “Texas Docs Care ensures damage from the storm won’t mean Texans are cut off from the medical attention they might need.”
With Texas Docs Care, Texans will be able to download the CirrusMD app and share images, video chat, or send a secure text message to a UT Southwestern doctor on a computer or mobile device – at no cost.
UT Southwestern’s physicians will be available from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. to address concerns such as refilling prescriptions, obtaining substitutions for medical equipment damaged or left behind in the floods, and discussing symptoms and other issues for those who can’t reach their physicians.
“We’re excited to partner with UT Southwestern to provide immediate access to a doctor through our app,” said Andy Altorfer, CirrusMD CEO. “By giving patients a complimentary, HIPAA-compliant, virtual-care option to text, image share, or video chat directly with a UT Southwestern doctor, we can remove barriers to care and help ensure they’re seeing the right doctor at the right time.”
The service is available to those residing in Texas by registering for the platform online at TexasDocs.Care. FEMA ID is needed to register. After registering, individuals can download the app to their smartphone through the iTunes/Apple App Store or Google Play store.
###
UT Southwestern Medical Center: UT Southwestern, one of the premier academic medical centers in the nation, integrates pioneering biomedical research with exceptional clinical care and education. The institution’s faculty has received six Nobel Prizes, and includes 22 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 18 members of the National Academy of Medicine, and 14 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigators. The faculty of more than 2,700 is responsible for groundbreaking medical advances and is committed to translating science-driven research quickly to new clinical treatments. UT Southwestern physicians provide care in about 80 specialties to more than 100,000 hospitalized patients, 600,000 emergency room cases, and oversee approximately 2.2 million outpatient visits a year.
CirrusMD Founded in 2012, CirrusMD develops virtual-care solutions for value-based healthcare organizations. Our technology allows patients to access convenient, timely medical care with local physicians in the same way that doctors address concerns for their friends and family – through text and video chat. The company currently provides telemedicine services to over 3 million covered lives. Learn more about CirrusMD on our website: cirrusmd.com.
###
This news release is available on our homepage at utsouthwestern.edu/news
To automatically receive news releases from UT Southwestern via email, subscribe at utsouthwestern.edu/receivenews
RSS