How To Build Trust in Virtual Care Settings: A Guide for Telehealth Platforms

Trust is the foundation of effective healthcare. Patients who trust their providers and clinicians experience greater satisfaction with their treatment, listen more closely to medical advice, and ultimately achieve better health outcomes. However, the introduction and rise of telehealth has brought with it new challenges in establishing and maintaining this trust. The absence of physical presence removes critical signals like body language, touch, and in-person reassurances.

Secondly, quickly implemented telehealth solutions driven by the COVID-19 pandemic are no longer fit for purpose and quality varies hugely across the industry, resulting in diminished trust in health technology. On top of this, anxiousness around technological advancements like AI can make patients nervous and skeptical. To combat this mistrust, healthcare providers and technology platforms must take a strategic, patient-centric approach to build and maintain trust in virtual care settings using technology as an enabler rather than a hindrance.

Why is trust important in healthcare settings?

When trust is established between practitioner and patient, open communication is far more likely, resulting in patients feeling heard and valued, and improving confidence in the care they receive.

According to a report by Emergency Medical Australasia, patients with higher levels of trust “exhibit more positive health behaviours; experience fewer adverse symptoms; and show improvements in quality of life”.

Traditionally, physical touch has played a vital role in fostering patient trust alongside physical cues like eye contact and body language. With the growth of digital care offerings, alternative strategies are needed to address and combat the limitations of not being physically together in the same room.

Privacy & Security: The foundation of trust

Privacy and security are clearly vital in any healthcare setting, no less so in virtual environments. From the first interaction with a telehealth platform, patients must feel safe and secure in the confidentiality of their health information and details shared in sensitive conversations with clinicians. This starts with choosing video calling and other suppliers that meet compliance standards such as GDPR, ISO27001 and HIPAA to reassure patients that their health data is protected. Currently, “data security concerns” are one of the top barriers to using telehealth.

Aside from this, there are various features and methods that can be incorporated into a video consultation UI to build trust. From locked virtual waiting rooms to clear indicators of who is in the video meeting room, telehealth functionalities can greatly reduce privacy concerns.

Providing functionality for practitioners to clearly display names, roles and qualifications either in waiting rooms or within video consultations can help to increase transparency and patient trust that they are speaking to a legitimate professional.

Provide a user-friendly experience

Bumping patients to an external video meeting link just won’t cut it anymore. Using an integrated solution helps to enhance trust by maintaining a consistent, seamless journey that keeps the patient inside the healthcare specific environment.

Building a one-stop platform that allows patients to access records, prescriptions, consultations and follow-up care within the same system helps to improve trust in the overall experience of virtual healthcare. Design plays a vital role here; telehealth UI’s should be designed to be easy to use and intuitive with a non-corporate, welcoming feel.

Address fears and embrace efficiency of AI

It’s clear that artificial intelligence isn’t going anywhere any time soon. And why should it? There is huge potential in the ways that AI can benefit healthcare delivery, however there is also a lot of skepticism. Patients (and equally practitioners) are fearful of their doctor being replaced with an AI avatar and the removal of the human nature of care. Education is needed to emphasise that AI should support and not replace human-centric care. It is not a replacement for human interaction but can be used to improve efficiencies; from automated note-taking to triaging via chatbots, to agentic AI “helpers” giving medication reminders. AI can reduce administrative burden freeing up clinician’s time to focus on patient relationships and more complex cases. Telehealth platforms can help to build trust by clearly communicating when AI is being used and for what purpose.

Ensure reliability & minimize tech issues

Trust erodes quickly when technical issues interfere with care. Reliable, high-quality telehealth experiences are non-negotiable. Telehealth platforms should ensure they choose a video conferencing provider that offers stable video and audio quality across a variety of network conditions.

Choosing a solution that enables patients to proactively troubleshoot hardware and connectivity issues also fosters trust and empowers patients to quickly address technical issues themselves.

Enable practitioners to build meaningful connections

To foster trust in a virtual setting, clinicians must be equipped with the right tools and training to make online consultations feel personal and engaging. Clinicians have noted that virtual settings can help to build closer relationships with patients, if they are run effectively.

Telehealth platforms can help by simplifying workflows and reducing technical overload that can lead to tech fatigue, allowing clinicians to focus on the patient and not the platform.

Training should also be provided to guide practitioners on effective methods of hosting virtual consultations. Virtual care isn’t just an in-person consultation over video. Certain techniques must be adopted and nuances addressed to ensure effective care and maintain human connection. This can include techniques to build trust via physical cues including eye contact, facial expressions and body language, and tips on technical equipment and setup.

Empower patients with autonomy

Patients who feel in control of their healthcare decisions are more likely to trust the process and their provider. Offering a choice between in-person, audio only and video appointments when possible allows the patient to decide what works best for them.

Many patients prefer remote care and value the flexibility and reduced travel time. Allowing the flexibility to schedule at a time that suits them, and access care from the comfort of their own home or while on the move creates a positive attitude towards healthcare services. According to a study by J.D. Power “convenience” is the top reason that patients use telehealth.

Clinicians can also foster trust by checking that a patient is in a private and comfortable space at the beginning of a virtual consultation to further enhance privacy and confidentiality.

Empower patients with autonomy

By providing practical tips for clinicians, and robust, secure and trustworthy technology, telehealth platforms are in prime position to build a future of trust in virtual care options. By prioritizing privacy, user experience, ethical AI integration, reliability, clinician support, and patient autonomy, virtual healthcare can become not just a convenient option, but a deeply trusted mode of care. Choosing the right 3rd party providers for areas like video conferencing is just one essential building block in creating a trustworthy Telehealth platform. Find out how Whereby can help with their Telehealth focused video call API.