Is It Spring Allergies or a Cold? Ask Doctor On Demand
This post was sponsored by Doctor On Demand as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central.
I don’t know about the rest of yall, but the appearance of spring means that I’m constantly sneezing and sniffling, plus my throat is itching like crazy most days. I’ve been taking an over the counter medication, but sometimes I wonder how effective it really is or if I’m not treating the right thing. However, I do not want to make a doctor’s appointment just to figure out if it’s really allergies or if I have a mere cold, but I’d totally sign into an app from my phone, tablet, or computer for a quick chat to figure out if I really need to head to urgent care or not.
Doctor On Demand lets you do just that very thing. You can schedule a visit from the privacy of your own home with a board-certified physician, psychiatrist, and even a doctorate-level psychologist in your state.
It’s as easy as downloading the app to your phone, listing your symptoms, and being connected with a doctor for $40 or less. Your health plan might also fully or partially cover the visit, but check with your employer first. I don’t know about you, but I’d much rather video chat with a doctor than head to urgent care only to wait in a room full of other sick people.
While you can see a doctor literally on demand, I scheduled my appointment ahead of time because it wasn’t urgent and I wanted to make sure I could talk without Sesame interfering. I decided to talk to the doctor about my spring allergy issues and find out of if I need to make an appointment with my primary care doctor. So, after our Sunday grocery trip, I logged into the app and waited for the phone call to come through. The doctor’s visit started right on time and after asking me a series of questions to assess my health, we discussed the issues I’ve been having. Dr. Gibbs agreed with my self-diagnosis and since I’m experiencing relief with my current OTC medicine it’s okay to stick with it, but he recommended a few other brands as well.
We talked about my home atmosphere and when I’m more likely to experience the symptoms and other options. His first suggestion was to make an appointment with my primary care doctor and an allergist this fall, when I’m less likely to experience symptoms. I didn’t know that I could actually get an allergy test for pollen and other seasonal allergies. I assumed that was only for food allergies. I know you’re thinking why not get it done now, but you have to be off of allergy medication for at least 30 days in order for the test to be accurate and I am not suffering for 30 days in this Georgia pollen. Dr. Gibbs also talked to me about more long term treatment solutions like allergy shots and steroids, but those are all things I need to go into an actual office to discuss.
Our conversation was so informative that I realized I forgot to take a screenshot, so you could see us chatting in real time, BUT I did remember to screenshot some of the patient instructions. Yup, that’s right you don’t have to take notes because when you go to your prior visit section, you’ll see the instructions that you need to remember.
I admit as much as I love technology, I was a bit skeptical about using a video service for medical attention, but it was really easy and informative. I’d use this service when I’ve missed the walk-in time for a sick visit for Sesame and I don’t want to head to the emergency room. I’d absolutely use this service when I’m feeling sick myself and it’s just not feasible for me to make it to a doctor’s office in the next 48 hours.
What about you? Would you use Doctor On Demand? If you want to try the quickest and most convenient way to be connected to a doctor from the privacy of your own home, download the app and use code MAMADEMICS10 to save $10 off your first visit.
Be sure to follow Doctor On Demand on Facebook and Twitter if you’re still a little wary.