Telehealth Glossary

A tool that allows two different software systems to talk to each other automatically. An API works like a translator between your website and another system. Instead of manually moving information from one place to another, an API lets your systems share data instantly and securely like sending a patient form from your site directly into a doctor’s dashboard or pharmacy.

A care model where patients submit forms, photos, or symptom details online, and physicians review and respond later, no live appointment required.

Why it matters: Asynchronous care increases efficiency and accessibility, reduces provider burnout, and creates predictable revenue models. It’s often the fastest, most scalable way for telehealth brands to expand into new states or categories.

The structure that determines how patients and providers interact, whether care happens live (synchronous), on-demand (asynchronous), or as a combination of both (hybrid).

Standardized clinical guidelines that providers follow for specific conditions or treatment categories.

Why it matters: Protocols ensure every provider delivers consistent, defensible care that aligns with medical standards and state regulations. They protect your brand from variability and compliance risk while preserving clinical quality at scale.

How MDI helps: MDI supplies state-compliant, physician-vetted protocols tailored to your treatment categories (from dermatology to weight management) so every provider can deliver safe, high-quality care with confidence.

A licensed pharmacy that custom-prepares medications to meet specific patient or prescriber needs, rather than dispensing only mass-produced drugs.

Why it matters: Compounding allows for personalized dosing, ingredient customization, or alternative delivery forms (like creams, lozenges, or injectables) when commercially available medications aren’t a perfect fit. For DTC telehealth brands, compounding can expand treatment options and differentiation, but it also introduces additional regulatory, safety, and fulfillment requirements.

How MDI helps: MDI partners with vetted, licensed compounding pharmacies that meet strict quality and compliance standards. We integrate these partners directly into your workflow, ensuring prescriptions are filled safely, shipped compliantly, and aligned with your brand’s treatment protocols, without the need to manage compounding operations in-house.

Documents that patients review and sign to acknowledge treatment details, potential risks, and their rights.

Why it matters: Consent forms are both a legal safeguard and a trust builder. They protect your business from liability, ensure regulatory compliance, and reinforce transparency in the patient relationship.

How MDI helps: MDI includes the right consent forms for every condition and state, embedding them directly into your patient workflows so they’re collected digitally, stored securely, and always audit-ready.

Corporate Practice of Medicine (CPOM)
A legal doctrine that prohibits non-physicians from practicing medicine or employing doctors to provide medical care.

Why it matters: The corporate practice of medicine exists to protect patients from commercial influence in clinical decision-making. It ensures that only licensed physicians (not business owners, investors, or technology companies) control how care is delivered. For telehealth founders, it defines the line between what your business can operate (the MSO: marketing, technology, and support) and what must be managed by physicians (the PC: diagnosis, prescribing, and medical oversight). Violating CPOM laws can result in fines, loss of licensure, and forced business restructuring.

How MDI helps: MDI’s physician-owned Professional Corporation (PC) and Virtual Care Network (VCN) structure fully comply with CPOM laws in all 50 states. We separate the business and clinical functions cleanly: your team runs the brand and technology, while our physicians handle care delivery under licensed supervision. This structure keeps your operations legal, compliant, and scalable, without the burden of managing corporate or clinical risk yourself.

The process of verifying a provider’s qualifications, licenses, and disciplinary history before they deliver care.

Why it matters: Credentialing confirms that every provider practicing under your brand is qualified, legally licensed, and safe to treat patients. Failing to credential (or relying on outdated records) can expose your business to fines, lawsuits, or loss of trust. Managing this in-house is often resource-intensive, especially across multiple states or provider types.

How MDI helps: MDI manages all credentialing and continuous monitoring for every provider in our Virtual Care Network (VCN). You gain instant access to a pre-vetted, compliant network, so your team can focus on growth, not paperwork or regulatory risk.

Pre-built connections between MDI and online store platforms like Shopify and WooCommerce that allow patients to initiate care safely from your website.

a digital system that stores a patient’s clinical history, including diagnoses, medications, lab results, allergies, treatment plans, and prior encounters. In telehealth, the EHR functions as the central source of truth for documenting care, maintaining continuity between asynchronous and synchronous encounters, and ensuring every clinical decision is recorded in a secure, standardized format.
Why It Matters: A reliable EHR is essential for safe, compliant telehealth operations. It ensures physicians have the information required to make appropriate clinical decisions, supports audit-ready documentation, enables cross-state care coordination, and protects patient safety. Without a structured EHR, telehealth workflows become fragmented, making it harder to maintain quality, consistency, and compliance across growing patient volumes or multiple specialties.

How MDI Helps: MD Integrations provides embedded clinical documentation tools that mirror the essential functions of an EHR while being tailored for virtual care. Physicians document directly within MDI’s secure platform, ensuring complete, structured, and compliant records for every asynchronous review or live consult.  MDI supports API pathways for brands that want to connect to an external EHR of choice.

a digital version of a patient’s chart used within a single clinic or healthcare practice. It includes clinical notes, diagnoses, treatment history, and other information generated by providers in that specific organization. Unlike an EHR, an EMR is not designed for broad data exchange or care coordination across multiple systems. Its primary purpose is to support documentation and workflow management inside one practice.

Why It Matters: EMRs help standardize internal documentation, reduce errors, and support clinical decision-making within a single care setting. In telehealth, however, EMRs can be limiting because they are not built for cross-state care models, multi-provider networks, or integrations with external systems. This makes EMRs less effective for virtual care brands that rely on distributed physician networks, asynchronous workflows, or multi-specialty operations.

How MDI Helps: MD Integrations provides a documentation layer that supports the essential functions of an EMR while being tailored to nationwide virtual care. Physicians record assessments, decisions, and consult outcomes directly within MDI’s secure platform, ensuring complete and compliant documentation for each encounter. When brands rely on external EMRs, MDI offers integration pathways so consult summaries, prescriptions, and follow-up notes can sync seamlessly into existing systems. This gives digital health teams the flexibility to maintain their internal records while leveraging MDI’s physician-first infrastructure for care delivery.

The curated list of medications your providers are authorized to prescribe within your virtual care program.

Why it matters: Your formulary defines the scope of your treatment offerings and positions your brand clinically and commercially. A clear formulary ensures providers prescribe safely, patients get consistent care, and your business stays compliant with pharmacy laws.

How MDI helps: MDI builds and manages your formulary in alignment with your care categories, state regulations, and pharmacy partners, giving you both clinical integrity and operational control.

A licensed pharmacy that fills and ships prescriptions to patients.

Why it matters: Fulfillment is the last mile of patient care, where trust, accuracy, and speed directly shape satisfaction and retention. Managing pharmacy operations independently can create regulatory and logistical complexity.

How MDI helps: MDI integrates with vetted, licensed fulfillment partners that handle dispensing and shipping under your brand. We ensure prescriptions are filled accurately, delivered compliantly, and tracked seamlessly within your workflow,  no extra vendors or setup required.

The federal standard that governs the privacy and security of patient health information (Protected Health Information, or PHI).

Why it matters: HIPAA violations can lead to severe financial penalties and reputational damage. Ensuring that all systems, vendors, and workflows meet HIPAA requirements protects patients’ trust and your brand’s integrity.

How MDI helps: MDI’s platform is HIPAA-compliant out of the box, with encrypted data storage, secure transmission, and audit-ready access controls. We also ensure all integrated partners and workflows maintain end-to-end compliance, so patient data remains private and protected at every step.

A blended model combining asynchronous intake with synchronous follow-up, or vice versa.

Why it matters: Hybrid workflows allow brands to balance convenience and compliance, offering flexibility while meeting regulatory and clinical standards. They also let providers triage efficiently and focus live time where it’s most valuable.

How MDI helps: MDI’s infrastructure supports hybrid care seamlessly, letting patients start async and move into a live consult if needed.

The different ways your telehealth or e-commerce platform can connect to MDI’s infrastructure

Insurance coverage that protects healthcare providers and organizations against legal claims related to patient care.

Why it matters: Even the most qualified providers face the risk of patient complaints or legal action. Malpractice insurance safeguards both your clinicians and your brand from financial exposure, ensuring stability and credibility in regulated markets.

How MDI helps: All providers in MDI’s network carry malpractice insurance under our physician-owned PC. This coverage extends to care delivered under your brand, meaning you don’t need to manage or negotiate individual policies, giving you peace of mind and stronger provider retention.

The business entity that manages your telehealth company’s non-clinical operations including marketing, technology, product, administration, and customer support.

Why it matters: In the U.S., non-physicians cannot legally own or manage the delivery of medical care, a restriction known as the corporate practice of medicine. The MSO model solves this by creating a compliant separation between the business and clinical sides of your company. Your MSO owns the brand, technology, and patient experience, while a physician-owned Professional Corporation (PC) employs the doctors and delivers the care.

A senior physician responsible for overseeing clinical quality, safety, and regulatory compliance across your virtual care program.

Why it matters: Every telehealth operation must have a licensed medical director to ensure care meets state and federal standards. This role protects both patients and your business by setting protocols, supervising providers, and maintaining quality assurance.

How MDI helps: MDI’s physician-owned Professional Corporation (PC) includes built-in medical director oversight, ensuring your brand operates with compliant clinical governance from day one, no separate contracting or recruiting required.

The clinical standard that determines whether a treatment or prescription is appropriate, justified, and legally defensible.

Why it matters: Medical necessity protects both patients and providers by ensuring that care decisions are evidence-based, documented, and compliant with payer and regulatory requirements. Failure to document it properly can lead to audits, denials, or liability exposure.

How MDI helps: MDI embeds medical-necessity checks directly into every workflow. Our protocols and oversight systems guide providers to document rationale clearly, keeping every consult defensible, compliant, and audit-ready.