Telehealth Services

The 2003-2006 Telehealth Strategic Business Plan focused on expanding the range of clinical services using telehealth. This led to the development of the Clinical Grant Fund which provided seed funding for clinical projects to offset the costs of implementing technology and adding services. To date, the fund has
invested in approximately 50 clinical programs which are making health services more accessible, proving the viability and quality of clinical telehealth services, and helping to build the provincial network.

A diverse range of clinical services is delivered via telehealth. These include:

• Specialist consults, both diagnostic and follow-up;
• Rehabilitation services such as physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech language therapy;
• Screening services and teleophthalmology; and
• Preventative services such as patient education sessions.

 

A telehealth session might involve videoconferencing between a specialist in an urban centre and a patient in a rural health center or a team of clinicians in one location and specialists in other parts of the province, videophone calls between health service providers and clients at home, or web-based services
accessible around the world.

Telehealth can be used to confirm whether an in-person consult is required. Where it is not required, telehealth sessions eliminate the need for travel; in other instances telehealth minimizes the number of trips a rural resident must make to an urban center. Travel for health service providers also decreases when home care workers can consult with patients via a home telehealth unit.

Telehealth is making new models of delivering care possible. For example, the Virtual Lung Clinic allows a patient to consult with multiple providers in one session rather than, as is traditionally done, attending a series of sessions over several months. One session provides the range of specialist expertise required to determine a diagnosis and identify the most appropriate next steps for a patient’s care.The patient is spared multiple trips and more timely treatment is possible. In many cases, the number of diagnostic tests required is reduced because time does not elapse between specialist visits.

Another way that telehealth is making new models of delivering care possible is by providing solutions to help address the needs of an aging population. For instance, telehealth enables more frequent monitoring via home telehealth applications and creative workforce options.

Telehealth in Alberta is part of a broadly based and inclusive health information technology strategy. There are a number of initiatives underway as part of that strategy, including the Electronic Health Record (EHR) which is developing a province-wide EHR network; Diagnostic Imaging (DI); Picture Archiving and
Communications System (PACS) which uses an image server to exchange X-rays, CT scans and other medical images over a network; and HealthLink. Linkages and relationships are in place to ensure that telehealth development is coordinated with these initiatives and is an integral piece of this enterprise.

 

Last updated: 5/18/2007 10:59:33 AM
Updated by: 2