Emergency Telehealth Service fuelled by more than chocolate over Easter with busiest day recorded for 2019

The Emergency Telehealth Service was busier than the Easter Bunny over the long weekend (Friday 19 to Monday 22 April 2019) with 292 country patients receiving specialist health care via videoconferencing technology.

The WA Country Health Service’s Medical Lead, Dr Andrew Jamieson, said there were 83 people using the Emergency Telehealth Service on Saturday alone, making it the one of the busiest days in the history of the service.

“Saturday was the busiest day for 2019 with the most common emergency presentations doctors diagnosed through the Emergency Telehealth Service being injuries such as sprains, fractures and burns.

This was followed by digestive issues including gastritis and respiratory conditions including asthma,” Dr Jamieson said.

“We often see a spike in the use of the Emergency Telehealth Service over the holiday periods such as Easter and Christmas.

It is a vital service helping rural and remote patients to get the care they need, closer to their homes,” he added.

Comparatively, the Emergency Telehealth Service was used 41 times on Wednesday of the same week, making Saturday’s 83 patients more than double.

Jurien Bay requested the most assistance from the Emergency Telehealth Service over the long weekend for injuries such as open wounds with Boddington in second place.

Since the inception of the award winning Emergency Telehealth Service in 2012, more than 80,000 consultations have taken place across WA.