SA Health recently moved to the cloud to provide more efficient stroke care to patients living in rural and rural areas.
According to a press release, Telestroke SA Services used the Zeus cloud-based telemedicine platform to collect vital health information from stroke patients, including brain scans and medical records. consulting, into a single platform. It is being deployed by the Australian Stroke Alliance across 61 hospitals in the SA region and Alice Springs in the Northern Territory as part of a five-year agreement with SA Health.
Since Zeus launched last year, the service has received more than 440 calls.
Meanwhile, SA Health is working to allow some hospitals in the region to directly link brain imaging data to Zeus to streamline neurologists’ access to patient information. From this week through the end of the year, this capability will roll out to the first eight rural hospitals, including Riverland General Hospital.
WHY IT IMPORTANT
Stroke is the leading cause of death in Australia. Today, almost half a million Australians are believed to be living with its effects.
In stroke care, “time is wisdom” and that is why it is important to never delay treatment every minute after the event has begun. SA Health Minister Christ Picton said: “Every minute counts as a stroke and the quicker we can treat it, the better it can help save lives.”
Since moving to the cloud through the Zeus platform, SA Telestroke has doubled its ability to treat patients with thrombectomy and can deliver a life-saving treatment “up to 30 minutes faster” . It has also seen improved efficiency in conducting teleconsultations and improved access to stroke treatment within the Local Health Network in the region.
Furthermore, it reduced unnecessary hospital-to-hospital transfers by 72%,
TREND TO BIGGER WOMAN
Partner Services in New South Wales has also made strides in expanding access to stroke care in regional and rural communities. 24/7 NSW’s Telestroke service, which has so far treated more than 3,000 patients at 23 hospitals, is said to deliver treatment in rural areas faster than in major cities.
Meanwhile, the telestroke service in Western Australia has just started operating 24/7, after entering its second phase of rollout.
ON PROFILE
“The Zeus app allows SA Health to take the lead in streamlining emergency stroke care. It enables the medical workforce to connect with rural hospitals and patients quickly. This innovative program can inform future national changes and improvements in stroke care for all Australians,” said Professor Stephen Davis, co-chair. of the Australian Stroke Coalition, comments.
