Technology Improving Regional Australian Lives

The power of technology can truly be appreciated when its positive effect touches rural and remote communities that, in many cases, lack the necessary resources to access specialist medical resources, but technology is bridging the gap and providing patient care in the most remote places.

A few months ago, Teledermatologist received a referral from Mount Gambier for a 5 month old baby boy, (let’s call him Lachlan) who was covered from head to toe in a painful rash that was causing his parents sleepless nights and which the local GPs could not diagnose.

What would usually happen to Lachy?

The usual outcome for a situation like Lachy's Involves:

1. The parents booking a consultation with a Dermatologist in a Metropolitan area, like Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne, or as far as Perth or Brisbane.

2. Waiting 4 – 8 months for the Dermatology consultation… and sometimes longer.

3. Booking days off work for one or both parents to travel with distressed Lachy.

4. Jumping on a plane, navigating trains and cabs… all the while trying to keep baby lachy comfortable and calm.

5. Incurring the cost of a hotel or motel, if overnight stays where necessary.

6. Attending the 20 – 30 minute Dermatology consultation.

7. Getting poor Lachy home to Mount Gambier.

For many regional Australians, taking all of these steps and incurring all of the additional costs are a must if you want to see a specialist dermatologist and find a solution. Lucky for Lachy and his parents, we now live in a technological age where there are faster, more affordable and less stressful ways to access a specialist dermatologist.

What modern Dermatology options exist?

Teledermatologist is a digital dermatology practice that engages with regional and remote medical centres to provide access to FACD qualified Specialist Dermatologists via a safe and secure teleconference platform.

Teledermatology consultations are often hosted at a patient’s local medical centre where patients are accompanied by their trusted GP or Nurse, thus gaining the benefit of having two medical professionals discuss, evaluate and determine your dermatological condition. If required, prescriptions are made available to patients and any further treatment can be carried out by the GP. All of this is endorsed and fully supported by Medicare.

The Australian Government backs Telehealth initiatives (like Teledermatologist) by providing Medicare support schemes to:

• Patients using Telehealth Services, as patients receive a 150% Medicare Rebates (which means reduced out of pocket fees) for using Teledermatologist.

• Regional Medical Professionals (GPs and Nurses) are provided with a Medicare Item Number for attending Teledermatologist consultation with a patient.

So what really happened to little Lachy?

Lachy’s parents booked a Telederamtologist consultation and waited one week before returning to their local medical centre in Mount Gambier, where they were met by the smiling medical centres reception team.

After receiving a short phone call from the Teledermatologist Coordinator who confirmed their details and answered any final questions, Lachy and his parents where lead into the medical centres telemedicine consultation room by their family doctor, at which stage the consultation started and they were introduced to the Perth based specialist Dermatologist via Teledermatologists safe, secure teleconference platform.

This initial consultation went for 30 minutes, at which stage the rash was diagnosed, a prescription was written and a treatment plan devised. Months on from the Teledermatologist consultation, the painful rash has disappeared. Little Lachy is sleeping through the night and the family’s stress has disappeared.

To conclude, little Lachy’s dermatology consultation in Mount Gambier was coordinated by a Teledermatologist coordinator based in Newcastle, NSW, who set up and linked a specialist Dermatologist in Perth via a safe, secure teleconference platform to deliver a diagnosis and prescription. It is stories like these that warm the hearts of the Teledermatologist team and provides evidence of the technological age we now find ourselves living in, thus promoting health equity to all Australians.  

Please note; All of our cases studies are based on real consultations which have taken place. However, in an attempt to protect the privacy of our patient/s, some specific details within this case study are fictitious.