Telehealth has transformed how healthcare is delivered. As remote and virtual patient care become essential, Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems like talkEHR and Epic are integrating telehealth features to meet rising demand. In this article, we’ll explore what talkEHR offers regarding telehealth, how it stacks up against Epic in this domain, and what providers should know to choose between them.

1. What is talkEHR & Its Telehealth Offering

talkEHR is a cloud-based EHR platform by CareCloud. It includes modules for Electronic Health Records, Practice Management, Medical Billing, Clinical Templates, and importantly, Telehealth. 

Its telehealth features include:

• Virtual visits integrated within patient records: doctors can chart during the telehealth session without using separate tools. talkEHR™+1
  
  

• Easy access for patients: single-click connections, virtual waiting room, no extra apps in many cases. talkEHR™
  
  

• Integration with scheduling and billing workflows: appointments can be booked/rescheduled with telehealth considerations; follow-ups/calls could be turned into billable visits. talkEHR™+1
  
  

These capabilities make talkEHR a modern solution for practices wanting to offer remote care efficiently.

2. Epic’s Telehealth Capabilities & Comparison to talkEHR

Epic is one of the largest EHR systems used in major hospitals and health systems. Its telehealth features are also extensive.

Key points of comparison:

So, while both have telehealth + EHR integration, Epic often wins on scalability and depth (especially for large institutions), whereas talkEHR tends to offer a more streamlined, simpler, cost-effective solution for smaller practices.

3. Benefits of Telehealth in talkEHR

Here are benefits specific to talkEHR’s telehealth integration:

• Workflow efficiency: Because virtual visits are built into the same interface as patient records, clinicians don’t need to switch platforms. Faster charting, fewer clicks. talkEHR™+1
  
  

• Revenue stream: Telehealth visits, which might otherwise be informal (phone calls, followups) can become billable encounters. This helps practices to monetize virtual care. talkEHR™+1
  
  

• Accessibility / patient experience: Single-click, no extra app needed, simpler waiting rooms improve adoption by patients who might not be tech savvy. Also helps expand care reach geographically. talkEHR™+1
  
  

4. Challenges & Considerations

Even the best systems have trade-offs. Some issues to weigh when evaluating telehealth in talkEHR vs Epic:

• Scalability: talkEHR works well for smaller practices, but if an organization has multiple sites or large numbers of concurrent virtual visits, performance, support, or feature richness could be less than what Epic offers.
  
  

• Cost: While talkEHR is more cost-friendly per provider (plans starting around $249/month plus setup fees) Software Finder+1, scaling up might introduce additional costs. Epic often requires custom contracts and higher investment. Software Finder+1
  
  

• Complexity of features: Epic often includes more advanced tools (multi-party calls, telehealth across multiple specialties, advanced patient messaging, integrated translator or family member features), which may not be as mature in talkEHR yet.
  
  

• Regulatory / compliance / privacy considerations: For telehealth you need strong security, HIPAA compliance, secure data exchange, which both systems support but differences in local law or implementation quality matter.
  
  

5. Which Should Your Practice Choose?

Deciding between talkEHR and Epic (or considering implementing telehealth in either) depends heavily on your practice’s size, budget, patient population, and feature needs. Here are suggestions:

• If you run a small to medium outpatient clinic, single specialty practice, or want quick implementation with integrated telehealth, talkEHR may be better-suited.
  
  

• If you are a large hospital or multi-site provider, require complex workflows, many specialties, high volume of virtual care, or need advanced interoperability, Epic may be more appropriate despite higher cost and complexity.
  
  

• Evaluate your staffing: if staff are tech-savvy, adopting more advanced features works; otherwise simplicity and usability become critical.
  
  

• Always consider patient demographics: if many patients are older or less tech friendly, features like simple access, minimal apps, easy login (as in talkEHR) matter more for adoption.
  
  

Conclusion

Telehealth is now a core component of modern healthcare delivery. talkEHR offers strong telehealth integration combined with EHR features that are especially appealing to smaller to mid-sized practices. Telehealth in talkEHR & Epic

, meanwhile, provides an extensive suite of telehealth capabilities suited for larger organizations with wider, more complex needs. By carefully assessing your practice’s size, workflow complexity, budget, and patient population, you can choose the system that best enhances patient care and operational efficiency.

FAQs

1. Is talkEHR HIPAA compliant for telehealth?
Yes — talkEHR’s telehealth functionality is HIPAA-compliant. The platform integrates virtual visits securely into patient charting. talkEHR™+2talkEHR™+2

2. Can telehealth visits in talkEHR be billed similarly to in-person visits?
Yes. talkEHR offers the ability to convert follow-ups or virtual appointments into billable encounters under proper coding. talkEHR™+1

3. Do patients need a special app for talkEHR telehealth?
Often no. talkEHR provides access through single-click links without requiring patients to install extra apps. talkEHR™

4. How do the pricing plans differ for talkEHR and Epic around telehealth?
talkEHR offers more transparent and tiered pricing, starting around US$249/provider/month plus a setup fee. Software Finder+2talkEHR™+2 Epic pricing tends to be custom, usually higher, reflecting larger scale of deployment. Software Finder

5. Is there voice recognition / virtual assistant functionality in both?
talkEHR includes built-in voice recognition to allow for easier charting, reducing typing burden. talkEHR™+1 Epic also has voice-assistant-like features in some modules in certain deployments, depending on configuration