Peoria, Ill.-based OSF Healthcare established a telemedicine program designed to allow neurologists to conduct virtual visits with patients in remote locations, according to the Pantagraph.
The teleneurohospitalist program began at OSF St. Joseph Medical Center in Bloomington, Ill., and Pontiac, Ill.-based OSF Healthcare Saint James-John W. Albrecht Medical Center.
Using video and audio technology, neurologists at OSF Healthcare in Peoria can perform virtual examinations with nurse assistance of patients at the two participating hospitals. Virtual visits also include analyzing patients' medical images, lab results and clinical history.
Before implementing the program, nearly all Saint James' neurology patients were transferred to other OSF Healthcare hospitals. St. Joseph tried to recruit a neurologist for nearly four years before turning to telemedicine.
"We don't have enough neurologists to handle all the medical cases we're seeing," John M. Rinker, MD, CMO at St. James, told the Pantagraph. "We have to get creative in the way we provide medical care."
After launching the telemedicine program, only 30 percent to 40 percent of St. James' neurology patients require transfer, while most St. Joseph's neurology patients require no transfer.