Practical aspects of telehealth: are my patients suited to\ud telehealth?

[Extract] The first in a series of articles that demonstrate the practical aspects of telehealth, this paper provides three case studies that examine the suitability of telehealth for patients living in rural and remote areas who require ongoing specialist care.\u

Practical aspects of telehealth: establishing telehealth in an institution

The fifth in a series of papers on practical aspects of telehealth, this paper discusses telehealth models that can facilitate the provision of specialist services to rural and remote patients closer to home. Some of the barriers to successful implementation of these models relates to workforce, funding and infrastructure at rural sites, as well as the traditional mindset of healthcare professionals. Therefore, the rural sector needs to be adequately resourced for telehealth models to be substantive and successful. This paper describes the development of a large teleoncology network over a vast geographical area in North Queensland. Adequate resourcing for the rural sites and undertaking quality improvement activities has continually enhanced the model over a 5- to 6-year period. The benefits of this model of care are twofold: (i) patients received their care closer to home and (ii) the workforce, service capabilities and infrastructure for the hospital in Mt Isa (a rural town 900 km away from its tertiary centre) has improved

What's in a name? Brand name confusion and generic medicines

We need an urgent review of medicines labelling in Australia and New Zealand.Shane L Carney, Madlen Gazarian, Justin T Denholm, David M Reith, Robert K Penhall, Christine R Jenkins, Kay A Wilhelm, Paul A Komesaroff, Mary M Osborn and Richard O Da

Practical aspects of telehealth: set-up and preparation for video consultations

The third in a series of articles about the practical aspects of telehealth, this paper gives guidance on suitable setup for video consultations, including layout of rooms, managing sound and image quality, scheduling, testing and best practice in telehealth videoconferencing

Practical aspects of telehealth: doctor–patient relationship and communication

The fourth in a series of articles about the practical aspects of telehealth, this paper provides advice and information for specialists to communicate effectively with patients during a telehealth video consultation

Practical aspects of telehealth: financial considerations

The second in a series of articles about the practical aspects of telehealth, this paper includes information and a case history on the cost-benefits for patients and practitioners using telehealth. The case history demonstrates that telehealth can save travel time for patients, carers and specialists, and can reduce out-of-pocket expenses. The practical aspects of telehealth article series considers the contextual, clinical, technical and ethical components of online video consultations