Transforming medical delivery

IMAGINE your doctor taking your blood pressure or a consult with a specialist who is on the other side of a computer screen. It is called telehealth and it could be the solution to better health care services in regional and remote Australia.

Telehealth is a cost-effective, real-time and convenient alternative to the more traditional face-to-face way of providing medical care and advice. It removes many of the barriers, such as distance, time and cost, which prevent patients who are in regional areas timely access to the appropriate health care services.

At the moment, the existing telehealth program is already proving popular with Australian patients and doctors, making it easier for people to receive care and advice via videoconferencing when they need it.

It has been six months since the government introduced Medicare rebates for telehealth consultations and the uptake has grown steadily with more than 7000 services provided by over 1200 clinicians across Australia, mostly to rural and remote areas.

Australian Medical Association president Dr Steve Hambleton said it would lessen the anxiety of people going out to the bush, as they could get ready access to specialist advice.

“It also helps with the professional isolation issues that many general practitioners face, when deciding to practice [in] rural areas,” he said.

“Professional isolation and caseload risks are an issue and if we can decrease that, we can make a difference.”

Hambleton said it was also a benefit for the patient who had long-term medical conditions that limited the amount of travel they could do.

Recently, a similar trial to telehealth called the Whole System Demonstrator program was carried out in Britain with positive results. Hambleton said it was the largest randomised control trial of telehealth in the world involving 6191 patients and 238 GP practices across three sites – Newham, Kent and Cornwall. Included in the telehealth trial were 3030 people with one of three conditions (diabetes, heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease).

The early indications revealed when used correctly, telehealth could deliver a 15% reduction in accidents and emergencies, a 20% reduction in emergency admission, a 14% reduction in elective admissions, a 14% reduction in bed days and an 8% reduction in tariff costs. There was also a 45% reduction in mortality rates.

“There are amazingly beneficial changes when you start monitoring people in their homes,” he said.

Last week, Health Minister Tanya Plibersek and Broadband, Communications and Digital Economy Minister Stephen Conroy said the national broadband network telehealth pilot program would deliver services to patients in NBN rollout areas and provide feedback on how this program and other health care measures could be delivered nationwide.

The speed, ubiquity and bandwidth of the NBN will enhance the reliability of bringing these services to Australians, ultimately transforming the way health care is delivered around the nation.

Over time, the NBN will provide an enhanced nationwide platform allowing homes, doctors, surgeries, pharmacies, clinics and aged-care facilities and allied health professionals to connect to affordable, reliable, high-speed and high-capacity broadband.

“The NBN telehealth pilot program will provide to eligible participants in NBN early rollout areas a range of innovative services delivered through pilots funded under the program,” Plibersek said. “These will include having health indicators monitored remotely, for instance, your doctor being able to take your blood pressure online when you are at home, or receiving medical consultations and healthy living support in the home.”

Meanwhile, Health and Ageing Minister Mark Butler said older Australians would stand to gain the most from the boost to telehealth services. “As we age, health issues tend to be more prevalent and we’re much more likely to require care and support from a wider range of health care professionals and specialists.”

Pilot programs are expected to start providing services as of July 1.