A new HSE South West Urgent Virtual Care (UVC) service has prevented hundreds of attendances at Emergency Departments across Cork and Kerry in the last month.
The Urgent Virtual Care (UVC) is a new service which allows GPs and Paramedics to consult directly by phone or by video call with a senior medical decision maker in Emergency Medicine or Geriatric Medicine.
The service, operating out of Cork University Hospital, started on November 4. Since then, it has dealt with over 410 referrals and some 69% of those patients have been helped to avoid an Emergency Department by being directed to another pathway. This means that more than 280 people have avoided ED in the last month, thanks to the service.
The service is run by a dedicated team of senior clinicians and support staff who provide virtual consultations and assessment from the centralised hub. While the hub is located at Cork University Hospital, it accepts referrals from GPs and paramedics across the HSE South West region. Only GPs and paramedics can refer patients to the Urgent Virtual Care service; patients cannot refer themselves.
Using a telehealth model, an expert team of clinical staff specialising in Emergency and Geriatric medicine assess the healthcare needs of eligible patients who, in some cases, are assessed from the comfort of their home. Through phone and video consultations, the team - in consultation with the patient's GP or paramedics - can facilitate pathways for ongoing care, in many cases bypassing the ED.
Dr Audrey Russell, GP Lead and SouthDoc Chairperson welcomed the UVC service: "The newly launched Urgent Virtual Care service in CUH presents GPs with alternative care pathways for our patients. We know that the Emergency Department may not always be suitable for our patients' needs but is often the only resource left to us. The UVC provides us with the opportunity to discuss the best and most appropriate care options for our patients. It helps to identify alternate pathways for those patients that don't require emergency care."
Professor Conor Deasy, Clinical Director of Emergency and Acute Care, CUH, added: “The Urgent Virtual Care service is a much-welcomed addition to our Emergency and Acute Care offering. We are committed to improving patient experience and we aim to ensure patients get the right care, by the right clinicians, at the right time. By engaging with the UVC, GPs and Paramedics are being supported to access more directly pathways across both acute hospitals and the prehospital and community health systems. Often this can result in the patient not needing to come to the Emergency Department."
Dr Mike O'Connor, Consultant Geriatrician CUH, said: “At times, we see that the Emergency Department may not be the best option for care for a patient. With the Urgent Virtual Care Centre, GPs and Paramedics can speak directly with an expert from emergency medicine or geriatrics medicine to help navigate patients to the best, most direct care pathway, to meet their clinical need. Sometimes this is through providing a direct telephone or video consultation with the patient or GP; sometimes it is by accessing community and prehospital services and supporting care delivery in the patient’s own home or nursing home; and sometimes it is through scheduling them to come in at an the optimum time so the clinicians they need to see - or the emergency investigations needed - are more readily available."
Priscilla Lynch, HSE Integrated Healthcare Area Manager, said the initial trial period has exceeded all expectations and the HSE will now work to extend the service. She said: "Supporting GPs and paramedics to find alternatives ways to access care for their patients is paying dividends. A huge thank you to the team involved in getting this ambitious project up and running, and we look forward to extending it even further."
The UVC service runs Monday to Friday from 10am until 6pm.
Referrals to the UVC can be made by GPs and paramedics only via Healthlink, Email, or by phone.
Last updated on: 06 / 12 / 2024
