The Northern NSW Local Health District (NNSWLHD) has launched a new initiative involving bedside teleconferencing between hospital patients and their GP.
NNSWLHD project officer Mel O’Reilly said it was crucial to improve continuity of care across the acute and primary care interface.
‘Many consumers of the public health system live with chronic health conditions, have complex care needs and may require frequent and lengthy hospital stays,’ Ms O’Reilly said.
‘Teleconferencing is an emerging technology that can be used to improve the transition of care between hospitals and the community. It is cost effective, time effective and has the ability to bring a number of people together in real time to provide a multifaceted approach to patient care.’
She said general practitioners knew their patients best and patients placed trust in the care provided by their GP. The service will be billable through Medicare.
‘The introduction of bedside teleconferencing will allow GPs to have a discussion about the care of their patients while their acute care needs are being met in the hospital setting,’ Ms O’Reilly said.
‘This communication between the acute and primary health care sectors will result in improved quality of care and health outcomes for consumers of our health system.’
She said the longer-term benefits of using bedside teleconferencing were likely to include reductions in length of hospital stay and incidences of failed discharges, reducing stress on the public health system.
Public hospitals at Tweed Heads, Murwillumbah, Byron Bay, Lismore and Ballina are participating in the bedside teleconferencing initiative.