The New Virtual Care Use Cases Powering the Next Phase of Telehealth

When people think about telehealth, they picture the same thing: a hospital, clinic or GP appointment over video. That was the starting point, since telehealth was adopted out of necessity during the pandemic, but it’s no longer the full picture.

As people are growing more comfortable and even expectant of digital care, those use cases are expanding fast. Today, more sectors within the healthcare industry are adopting telehealth as a core part of how they deliver care.

From community pharmacies to veterinary follow-ups, telehealth is giving more providers a way to follow up and offer quicker access between in-person visits.

So what emerging video consultation use cases are shaping the next phase of digital healthcare delivery? Here are a few we’re seeing.

1. Remote follow-ups in physiotherapy

Physiotherapy is often seen as one of the most “in-person” healthcare services because it's traditionally associated with hands-on treatment in a clinic.

More recently, platforms like FysioScout enable clinicians to use digital services, including video consultations, to support high-value moments across the patient care journey, particularly where in-person visits aren’t required, and ongoing guidance helps maintain continuity of care. Some of these include:

• early-stage assessments and triage

• exercise walkthroughs and corrections

• post-treatment follow-ups

• rehab progress check-ins

• mobility screening

So while most of the treatments still happen in person, we’re seeing physiotherapy move into a blended care model where these digital touch points ensure that patients stay connected, supported and on track to a full recovery.

2. Video calls are aiding pharmacy-led care

The modern pharmacy is no longer simply a place to pick up prescriptions. As healthcare systems face rising demand and limited capacity, pharmacies are stepping into a bigger clinical role, offering faster access and more convenient support for patients.

Beyond dispensing, more pharmacies are delivering medication consultations, repeat prescriptions, and a growing range of private services such as travel health, flu support, and screening. In England, pharmacy teams offset an estimated 38 million GP appointments a year, significantly reducing weekly demand on NHS services.

Patients want to book consultations, ask questions, request repeats, and get support without standing at a counter. We see pharmacies becoming service-led rather than product-led, and video consultations are becoming a larger part of how they provide that service at scale.

Charac is a great example of how pharmacies are adopting video calls for care delivery. Their platform supports pharmacies with online tools for patient communication, service booking, and digital consultations.

3. Fertility and reproductive care

Fertility treatment is emotional, time-sensitive, and conversation-heavy. At all stages, from early planning and test reviews to medication guidance and next steps, practitioners need to provide consultation.

This makes this branch of care particularly well-suited to video consultations, which are becoming a routine part of the IVF journey. Platforms like IVF Cube use Whereby’s video call API to make remote coordination and frequent virtual communication the norm.

Many fertility clinics globally also use video appointments for initial consultations and follow-ups, giving patients flexibility without sacrificing continuity of care. This appears to be largely adopted by patients who live farther from clinics, as it could reduce visit times.

Patients who used telemedicine as part of their fertility treatment even reported high satisfaction levels, with 91% saying they were satisfied.

4. At-home care coordination and family involvement

Video consultations are becoming more central in care settings where multiple people need to be involved.

This trend shows up strongly in elderly care, chronic condition support, and home-based care coordination, where video helps bring the patient, family members, carers and clinicians into the same conversation without travel. Clinicians can also assess cases without needing to be physically present.

Research in the care of older adults shows that clinicians view improved engagement between stakeholders as one of telehealth’s key benefits.

Providers like Immedicare deliver video-enabled clinical healthcare services into care homes, allowing clinicians to connect with residents and care teams remotely via secure video links.

Within care homes and home care services, video is now used for family check-ins, clinician collaboration, remote nurse reviews, and medication or care plan discussions.

5. Triage and follow-ups in dermatology

Dermatology is another area where video consultations work well, particularly for triage and follow-ups.

Providers like Doctor on Demand, offer video appointments with dermatology-trained clinicians, allowing patients to discuss symptoms, show affected areas on camera, review treatment plans, and decide whether specialist or in-person care is needed.

Used this way, video helps reduce waiting times while ensuring clinic capacity is reserved for more complex cases.

6. Telehealth isn’t just for humans

Approximately 52% of pets in the US don’t receive necessary care for medical issues, often due to cost or access barriers. However, telehealth seems to be improving access to pet care.

An increasing number of veterinary practices are using video calls to support triage, follow-ups, and day-to-day owner guidance. Teleconsulting, which allows vets to provide advice over phone or video, is the most common telehealth model in veterinary care, generating $132.8 million in 2024 and capturing 36.36% of the market.

While this isn’t replacing in-clinic exams and surgery, it reduces unnecessary visits and helps vets focus on the cases that truly need hands-on care.

Platforms like FirstVet, which offer video consultations for pet owners, show how video calls can be used for events like post-op check-ins, mobility and behaviour monitoring, skin or ear assessments, and more.

Used this way, telehealth lowers stress for animals, saves time for owners, and helps clinics prioritise their workload more effectively.

The new normal for healthcare delivery

When you zoom out, telehealth is becoming an essential layer of service across different care sectors.

From pharmacies to vet practices, patients want healthcare that fits into their lives while providers want to reduce no-shows, friction and administrative load.

Telehealth and video consultations help solve these problems so care can be more accessible and easier to deliver.

If you’re thinking about how to integrate video, it doesn’t have to disrupt your existing setup. With video call APIs designed for telehealth like Whereby Embedded, you can embed secure video directly into your platform without rebuilding your system.

Find out more about how it works here.