This case study relates to the VPS value of responsiveness.
Background
The Victorian Virtual Emergency Department (VVED) service has revolutionised non-life-threatening care for Victorians.
Funded by the Victorian Government and delivered by Northern Health, the service provides access to free virtual care from anywhere in the state, 24 hours a day.
It helps more than 3,800 Victorian adults and children each week.
Challenge
The virtual service was created in 2020 as an alternate care pathway in response to soaring demand for healthcare during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The program aims to alleviate the:
- challenges faced by Victorians when visiting physical emergency. For example, travel, long wait times and associated costs.
- pressure on Ambulance Victoria and emergency waiting rooms.
Three years later, it’s now an established part of Victoria’s health system.
Using any device with a camera, patients can meet healthcare professionals via a free video-consultation from the comfort of their own home.
The service also:
- improves access for people in regional and remote areas
- helps people recieve urgent care faster
- frees up busy emergency departments and ambulance services attending to emergencies.
Result
The VVED currently provides virtual care to around 550 patients per day.
It has allowed non-urgent patients to be assessed virtually. This includes patients referred from GPs, paramedics and Nurse-On-Call.
Patient care is streamlined with non-critical cases redirected to the appropriate next stage. This includes referrals to local Priority Primary Care Centres, and e-prescriptions.
As of January 2024, the service has supported more than 241,223 patients since its started in October 2020.
Currently, 86% of patients seen by VVED did not require transport to, or care at a physical hospital, taking pressure off emergency departments and Ambulance Victoria.
For more information visit vved.org.au.