Navigating the Modern Healthcare Landscape: Online Models of Care for Health Practitioners

As a health practitioner, you have the wisdom and skills to make a meaningful impact on your clients’ overall health and well-being. But what if those relationships could extend beyond state lines?

Running a physical practice often comes with frustrations. Many of us are familiar with excessive overhead costs, long commutes, lack of patient engagement, mountains of paperwork, filing insurance claims and restricted income ceilings.

What if an online practice could help you reach — and positively affect — more people than ever before without sacrificing your ability to provide compassionate care while also creating financial stability? If you’ve considered this shift, you might wonder what it takes to move your practice online.

Modern healthcare is shifting, and now more than ever it’s essential that practitioners remain flexible while they navigate national, or even international, lines and explore the new online models of care for health practitioners. Creating an online practice offers a chance to improve access, boost care quality, and expand your client base. Transitioning from in-person to online or hybrid models can feel daunting, but it doesn’t have to be.

In this article, we’ll discuss how simple tools can help you stay ahead of the curve, make the transition smoother and help you prepare for success as an online health practitioner, so you can provide outstanding client care no matter where they (or YOU!) call home. Luckily, early adopters have made it easier for health practitioners to offer services online. Now, qualified health practitioners can work from anywhere with internet access while leveraging online models of care for health practitioners to serve clients worldwide.

Qualifications & Requirements for Creating a Thriving Virtual Practice

First off, let’s get clear on some definitions for the purpose of this article. A physical practice is your typical brick-and-mortar, where you see patients in-person under your scope of practice as a licensed healthcare provider. Telehealth, or telemedicine, is still practicing under your license, but utilizing video calls and/or phone consults in place of an in-person appointment. Typically, you’ll still meet with patients in the state(s) where you hold a license. A virtual, or online, practice on the other hand is where you are operating as a non-licensed or unlicensed health consultant and you conduct all consults via phone or video. These evolving online models of care for health practitioners are reshaping how providers deliver services in today’s digital landscape.

So who is qualified to take this route? If you are reading this, you are likely qualified! Practitioners from various backgrounds, such as Naturopathic Medicine, Acupuncture, Nurse Practitioner, Physician, Chiropractor, Registered Nurse, Physician’s Assistant, Dietitians, Nutritionists and even seasoned Health Coaches can create a thriving virtual practice as an online health consultant, wellness mentor or whatever title feels most aligned for you.

But here’s the catch. Sometimes I see health practitioners calling themselves a “health coach” without proper credentials. Skip this route unless you’re certified as a health coach, since that field already has its own rules and standards. We will discuss certifications a bit more, when we dive into the legal aspects involved in running an online practice.

The first step is to decide whether or not you want to maintain an active license.

Hybrid Model: In-Person & Virtual Practice

If you choose to maintain your license, you will likely choose this route. If you choose this model, we highly recommend that you set up two business entities: one (like an LLC) for your in-person practice and another for your online practice. And whenever you’re working inside your physical practice—whether in person or through telehealth—you still need to follow all state, licensing, and board requirements.

However, you may also want to expand beyond state (or even country lines) to see clients virtually. If this is the case, you will likely want to create a separate NEW business entity (usually a Limited Liability Company, but be sure to speak with your own advisor) dedicated to your online practice. This means, for your new virtual practice, you will want to have a dedicated business license, tax ID, business bank account and EHR or practice management software to keep things clearly delineated.

Fully Virtual Practice

If you choose to deactivate your license, or let it lapse, and are ready to take the leap into a fully virtual practice, there are a few considerations. First, if you currently have a physical practice, I would choose a specific date to make it official. This will keep everything crystal clear on the backend. Second, you will also want to give your current patients plenty of notice, and third, make sure you update all your public facing information to reflect the change — this means removing any and all information that may imply you are a licensed professional. Be sure to comb through your website, social media profiles, documents, etc.

If you are just starting a brand new practice from scratch and want to be in the online space, you’re in the right place. You may just need to make the decision regarding your license, and follow the guidelines I have set forth here in this article.

Legal Considerations for Online Health Practitioners

The guidelines and recommendations I discuss here will apply specifically to a virtual practice. Since the online space is rapidly growing and expanding for health practitioners (aka it’s the PERFECT time to take the leap!), there is a decent amount of gray area. This means there are very few hard and fast standards to abide by and follow. Practitioners often feel both excited and overwhelmed by this, because instead of clear black-and-white rules, they face endless variables and nuances.

Make sure you talk with an attorney who can walk you through your options, assess your risk tolerance, and help you make the best choices for yourself, your business, and your clients. However, there are a few guidelines that I have learned over the past several years.

Let’s talk about verbiage

The most obvious one is that when we are practicing in the online space, we are working with “clients” not “patients”. As more professionals adopt online models of care for health practitioners, the shift in language helps clarify that the role is about education and consultation, not diagnosis or prescriptions. You can offer recommendations or suggestions—but never prescriptions. We don’t treat, cure, or diagnose—our focus is on education and consultation only.

Let’s Talk Legal Forms (Don’t Skip This Part!)

You will want to ensure that you have proper legal forms in order that clearly state you are not operating as a licensed healthcare provider. My absolute FAVORITE resource for all things legal, including client agreements, disclaimers, terms and conditions, terms of use, consent forms, etc. is Lisa Fraley, JD, who is my personal legal coach and attorney. She provides DIY templates that you can modify to make your own, and she also provides one-on-one consulting to ensure you have everything in order based on the exact business model you are creating.

Setting Boundaries: What You Can Do Online

You might be wondering what you’re actually allowed to do in the online space. Again, I highly recommend speaking to an attorney for your specific circumstances, because there are nuances. However, I can confidently say that since 2018, my online practice has been almost identical to my in-person practice, except for physical exams. This is the reason why I require all my clients to have a Primary Care Provider on board, and yes, I collect their contact information for verification purposes. Keep in mind that nutritional guidelines vary by state, so depending on the services you offer, it’s important to learn the rules where you plan to practice. One resource to reference is this website.

Malpractice, Liability & Certifications

If you are maintaining your license, then you will definitely want to maintain your malpractice insurance for your physical practice, however, it likely will not cover your virtual practice, but you can always discuss this with your specific insurance provider.

Malpractice coverage usually isn’t available—or even required—for fully virtual practitioners without a license. Liability insurance is something to consider, again not required, but it was the option I chose for my own practice. When applying, you can typically let them know that you will be operating similar to a health coach, and they can find the plan best suited to you. My liability insurance is around $200 for the entire year.

If you’re heading down the path of becoming an unlicensed or non-licensed practitioner, it’s a smart move to get a recognized health coaching certification. Being certified as a health or wellness coach can provide an additional layer of security for practitioners, but again, I recommend speaking to an attorney directly to assess your specific circumstances.

Essential Technology for Your Online Practice

After practicing exclusively in the online space for almost 5 years, and mentoring over 85 practitioners, I’ve found that the most challenging aspect to running a virtual practice is figuring out which technology and softwares to use.

My basic tech stack for virtual health consulting includes Zoom and Practice Better. With these tools, I have been able to conduct potent, effective and streamlined consults while creating a space where my clients feel seen, heard and understood. Of course, some of this depends on the type of practitioner you are and the environment you want to provide for your client.

In addition to a basic tech stack, we cannot deny that having a social media presence is a huge factor when growing a thriving virtual practice. When you’re just starting out on social media, remember this: quality beats quantity every time. You do not need to have 10M followers to build a successful virtual practice.

Social media and marketing deserve a whole conversation on their own, but let me share a few of my favorite ways to keep the tech side simple. For planning, scheduling, finding hashtags and analytics, I have been really liking Metricool lately. For graphics, quote cards and putting text on photos, I love Canva.

Summary

Navigating the modern healthcare landscape can be daunting for health practitioners, but creating an online practice can help improve access, increase quality of care and expand client base. This article discusses the qualifications and requirements for creating a thriving virtual practice, legal considerations, and essential technology for an online practice. With the right tools and knowledge, health practitioners can provide compassionate care to clients from anywhere with internet access.

This article provides some of the foundational steps health practitioners can take to ensure they are running a successful virtual practice. It’s important to have the right tools in place to manage clients and communications, as well as understand the legal requirements of running an online practice. Having the right certifications and qualifications can also help to set virtual practitioners apart and ensure they are providing quality care to their clients. Finally, having a strong social media presence can help to boost visibility for the virtual practice and make sure it’s reaching the right clients.

Looking forward to seeing your smiling face in the online space!