Backed by a state government commitment to improve palliative care for all South Australians, a mobile telehealth project was developed for regional Local Health Networks (rLHNs) to: enable access to specialist medical palliative care consultation with metropolitan services in between scheduled face-to-face medical specialist visits; broaden the availability and reach of home-based effective and timely palliative care for regional patients;  strengthen collaboration/partnerships between metropolitan and regional palliative care services and regional GPs to improve coordination and continuity of care; and keep patients in the comfort of their home longer, improving complex symptom and medication management, reducing travel and minimising pressure on hospital systems.

A small project team supported implementation of the project into the six rLHNS including evaluation of project outcomes. Data collection included number of patients seen and telehealth (video) consultations undertaken, and patient and clinician feedback which will be the focus of this presentation.

Feedback highlighted appreciation for the mobile telehealth services in maximising patient care: enabling access to medical specialists when most needed; enabling the inclusion of several clinical/medical practitioners in a consult, making care more holistic and coordinated, and improving effective collaboration and efficiency (particularly with metropolitan-based clinicians) in giving the right care at the right time; enabling the participation of geographically dispersed family members to contribute to care decision making; and the significant reduction in physically and mentally taxing travel afforded by home-based/bed-side consultations.

 

Overall, the mobile telehealth service has greatly improved the end-of-life experience for patients and a wider group of patients now have access to specialist consultation when they require it, “not only the extreme cases”. The advent of COVID-19 had an impact on the project and lessons learned, providing both barriers and enablers to successful implementation.