Ondřej Sobotka interviewed a colleague, Dr. Sulíková, from the clinic in Jílový near Děčín. As it was his hometown, it was of course a matter of heart, and he was curious to see how his countrymen were coping in Děčín and how Emma's sister proved to them. Dr. Sulíková has been using Emma in her office for some time and shared her experience with us.

How did Emma's commitment work in your office?

My sister and I saw a huge reduction in phone calls that were absolutely mentally draining and decimating us. A person was in a state where he was literally furious and averse when the phone rang. Even that patient then talked through clenched teeth, which incredibly drains energy. A person is completely exhausted after work, because not only does he have a lot to do, but there is also resistance and a certain need for disguise in order to maintain a professional attitude. It takes a lot of strength.

Did Emmy help you?

It's a tremendous saving of time that I can devote to patients who come directly to the office and the problems I have to deal with them personally. The main thing is to reduce the frequency of those phone calls. I don't know if my colleagues can handle it, but we already have about the sixth or seventh ringing — we have to change them all the time, because as it rings, I'm already thinking about a new phone, just to make sure there are different sounds on the landline. Because when it rings, you get an incredible adrenaline rush. And if they ring one after the other, as the first one ends, the next one starts right away, that's not possible.

Do people generally call more today?

In my opinion, it spread the most during Covid. Unfortunately, I have to say that people have become so used to calling doctors that after the pandemic has subsided, it has not been reduced to pre-covid levels, and therefore we really have no choice but to use any method or option to reduce it to a minimum.

How did you and Emmy get along?

When I bought it, I was quite in anticipation of what it would actually bring us, whether patients would accept it and if they would accept the change. I am in charge of a district that consists of mostly elderly patients, so 60% of them are over 65 years of age. And even in our region they are not very willing to use new technologies (of course, with a few active exceptions). But I have to say that, despite my expectations, the patients received it positively.

All of them?

Of course, there are people who refuse it until now, but that's always the case with every new method. Such people are only willing to call a landline and do not even use a mobile phone. But the young ones seized on it completely. They are very fond of Emmys and even use the option of representation when they order their relatives. That's taken very seriously and it's a big advantage. I have to say that when it comes to phone calls, almost no one calls “for someone” anymore. If anyone calls, it's older patients who sort things out for themselves. But proxy orders for anything, be it medication or some kind of checkup and prevention, or simply something they need, actually happen through a virtual nurse. I have to say, it was a big surprise for me.

Glad to hear that, of course.

We're happy, too. Because I wondered during those first three months if we were going to stay at it at all. I wasn't sure if patients were going to use it. If the effectiveness of the Emmy was low, then there is no point in that.

Was it easy to convince your sister to start using Emmy?

She was terribly afraid of it, although she is only 48 and very capable. But she admitted this to me in retrospect, not allowing herself to say anything beforehand. In this case, she didn't have the right to vote.

These are the best years.

They are. She controls the phone, she understands technology, but she was still worried about it. But now he can't let that happen. After finding out what working with a virtual nurse entails, she threw herself into it and today, without much exaggeration, she went for it with a pen. We get on in the morning and she's already handling the Emmys. I have to tell her, “no, no, no, leave it, I'll do it, you've had so much work to do with it...” But no, she'll just sort it out and do everything. Really, it leaves me with maybe two people at the end of the surgery who need my comment or something from me to sort it out. And just when she's not at the Emmy, I can quickly do something. But she's really into it with joy and she's really excited. She says she wouldn't expect the Emmys to be such a benefit to our work.

And you were afraid, too?

I'm not, I'm not afraid of new technologies. I had only one concern -- that the seniors, as I told you, would not go for me. And also from the fact that for ten people a day it makes no sense. Ten phone calls a day will no longer affect our work. However, the reality exceeded our expectations. Maybe after the weekend you come and, thanks to Emma, you process one patient after another. We will be able to handle all requests during the day from Friday afternoon to those Monday that come during the day. And we do it with a feeling of a job well done, everything is furnished, everything is as it should be.

Are new technologies interesting to you?

Whenever there's a news item that makes it easier for me or my sister in the office, I go for it. Always. This is the money you invest in yourself, because our work is exhausting and if we do not make it easier, we are in real danger of burnout today and every day. The important thing is to eliminate what annoys us, what delays us, what sucks our energy. As far as I can go, I'm trying to shift it to technologies that will do it for us. I think that's the only way to go today. Let's see what artificial intelligence does in this... maybe we won't even need that in the doctor's office anymore.

We're just going to have a cup of coffee, as patients often imagine — that we don't pick up our phones at work because we have our feet on the table... Would you like to say something else to colleagues, general practitioners?

Save your staff. There are few good nurses, and for them to burn out because of the phone calls, because of these horrible ringing rings, I think that's the wrong way to go. And I would send them one more message. If you haven't tried Emmy yet, give her a chance. For two or three months, you'll find out if this is the system for you. You don't give anything for that. Find the courage to go for it. Whether one is older or younger, because Emmy is actually very simple. That's my message.