Southern develops Microsoft Teams for telehealth

eHealthNews.nz: Digital Patient

Wednesday, 28 October 2020

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Picture: Patient Janice McDrury in a telehealth consultation with Southern DHB Endocrinologist Professor Patrick Manning

eHealthNews.nz editor Rebecca McBeth

Southern DHB is developing a telehealth platform using Microsoft Teams.

Simon Donlevy, SDHB acting general manager medicine and women’s and children’s health, says telehealth was available prior to the arrival of Covid-19 and the DHB had tried to promote its use.

“It’s fair to say there was a degree of concern and apprehension about the utility of telehealth and whether patients and medical staff would take to it, because it’s a significant change in practice,” he says.

One week in November last year there were just 28 telehealth appointments, all via video conference.

In a week in April 2020, more than 2,800 telehealth appointments were conducted and in the last week of August, clinicians did 178 telehealth appointments with patients.

“Covid forced us to make those changes and feedback from patients and clinicians was that it was very well received so it provided a very good proof of concept to move forward and promote telehealth more strongly and convince clinicians that telehealth is a viable option,” says Donlevy.

Clinicians use two screens for telehealth appointments, one for interacting with the patient and the other showing Health Connect South, the clinical portal for the South Island.

The DHB is now establishing a robust video platform for patients to interact with their clinicians using Microsoft Teams.

“We’re concentrating at the moment on the platform, then we will be very quickly looking to ensure we have the ability for patients who perhaps don’t have the equipment to still access telehealth,” he says.

“We will never be forcing patients to use telehealth as some will never be comfortable and we can’t forget the need for in-person appointments as well.”

The DHB is planning its move into a new ‘digital hospital’ with outpatients due to open in early 2025 and inpatients in 2028. Donlevy says telehealth will certainly be part of the “move towards a more digital age”.

Read more about the use of telehealth in DHBs like Southern in the eHealthNews.nz special report, Telehealth at New Zealand DHBs and the impact of Covid-19, available exclusively to HiNZ members.