A virtual urgent care service has been established at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital (WCH) to reduce wait times and ease pressure on the hospital’s Paediatric Emergency Department (PED).
The WCH said the Children and Adolescent Virtual Urgent Care Service would be available seven days a week from 1pm to 8.30pm to provide families with medical assessment and advice from their home and help them avoid unnecessary trips to the emergency department.
Chief Executive of the Women’s and Children’s Health Network, Lindsey Gough said the Service would allow concerned parents to link up with highly skilled emergency nurses and doctors to receive personal medical advice for their child.
“Our Hospital’s new service provides access to timely medical care in the home for children with non-life-threatening conditions,” Ms Gough said.
She said the service could be accessed online and parents would be asked a series of questions to determine the urgency of the medical condition.
Project lead for the Children and Adolescent Virtual Urgent Care Service at WCH, Kerry McKeough said the Service would operate during peak demand time for the hospital’s emergency department.
“Patients will be able to speak directly to a skilled doctor or nurse via video-link from their own home or community,” Ms McKeough said.
“The clinician will then provide specific advice, and may refer patients to a general practitioner, local pharmacy, or an emergency department, depending on the child’s condition.
“We have a highly skilled team of consultants, nurses and administration staff working on this initiative to ensure it’s a valuable resource for our consumers,” she said.
For further information on the Service, including registration, can be accessed at this PS News link.
