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Country life not interrupted for specialist's appointment 25 June 2018 Life in quiet Mingenew is lovely for Wayne Kipps. However, Mr Kipps has a sustained brain injury which has resulted in frequent epileptic seizures, and so he has had to often leave town to see his neurologist, 300kms away in Perth. But these days Mr Kipps only has to travel to near-by Three Springs Hospital to speak to his doctor via videoconference. The week has been organised by the WA Country Health Service to highlight that healthcare appointments delivered by telehealth are now widely available to country patients, without the stress and cost of travel. As well as the cost of travel, Mr Kipps said that stress was another issue caused by having to travel for medical appointments. Mr Kipp’s wife Shiralee always attends the appointments – partly because her knowledge of his symptoms is vital in Dr Lawn’s assessments, and partly because she needs to drive her husband. ...
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Diabetes telehealth helps mum stay healthy in town 25 June 2018 Cowaramup mum Claire Hubbard says that telehealth saved her a lot of stress during her recent pregnancy. Claire considered herself quite healthy and had not thought too much about what she ate, until she was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. She was able to cope with her new way of life through weekly telehealth sessions that she held with a diabetes educator in Perth at Diabetes WA (DWA), using videoconferencing on her home computer. The week has been organised by the WA Country Health Service and its service partners to highlight that healthcare appointments delivered by telehealth are now widely available to country patients, without the stress and cost of travel. This Diabetes Telehealth service is delivered by Diabetes WA in partnership with WA Country Health Service and WA Primary Health Alliance. Instead of traveling to see a specialist, Claire was able to record her daily bloo...
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Grandpa stays home with kids thanks to telehealth 25 June 2018 Carnarvon grandfather Colin Cook is a busy man – he has grandchildren to look after and a busy life to lead. He is also recovering from cancer, and after having to live in Perth for months to receive treatment, he is glad to be back at home looking after his family. It is a significant relief then that he doesn’t have to keep travelling back to Perth for his follow-up appointments, thanks to the technology of telehealth. Mr Cook said that using telehealth was very easy and low-stress. “Travelling to Perth is a lot of mucking about and every time you go you have to organise to pay for accommodation – you just don’t need that stress when you’re going through treatment,” he said. “My wife works and so I am busy looking after the grandkids.” Mr Cook visits Carnarvon Hospital and a local staff member connects him to his doctor onscreen, us...
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Ian keeps on trucking for specialist’s appointment 25 June 2018 When Ian Barlow sees his cancer specialist, he’s usually sitting in the cab of his road train. Telehealth is enabling the Esperance truckie, who has lymphoma cancer, to have most of his regular check-ups with his specialist on his smartphone parked at the side of the road during his compulsory fatigue break. Doing it this way, he avoids a visit to Esperance Hospital for a 5 to 10-minute telehealth appointment which will take three hours out of his working day with travel and waiting time – and the loss of income from time off work. He couldn’t be happier. “I think it’s awesome – wherever I can get mobile service, I can make the call,” the 49-year-old father-of-three said. “I don’t have to knock off work for three hours, I don’t have to park my truck up, I just pull over and call up.” Healthcare delivered closer to home is ...
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Kate 'rapt' in telehealth stroke treatment 25 June 2018 Bunbury’s Kate Haddrill might not remember a lot about the day she suffered a stroke apart from falling twice while making the bed and going to Perth in a helicopter. But she is quite clear about how grateful she is that local doctors had access to telehealth to enable fast access to treatment which reduced the stroke’s impact. “I wouldn’t be as good as I am today, I’m sure of that,” she said. Healthcare delivered closer to home is under the spotlight this week as part of Telehealth Awareness Week, 25–29 June. The week has been organised by the WA Country Health Service (WACHS) and its service partners to highlight that healthcare delivered by telehealth is now widely available to country patients, without the stress and cost of travel. After St John Ambulance officers alerted Bunbury Regional Hospital of Kate’s suspected stroke, Emergency ...
Last Updated:
24/01/2024