NZ Air Ambulance deploys secure messaging

NEWS - eHealthNews.nz editor Rebecca McBeth

New Zealand Air Ambulance has implemented Celo’s healthcare messaging solution across its six bases and 120 staff.

The service has also extended its licence to cover 100 third parties across the country, including aeromedical helicopter crews and hospital ICU and transport teams, to ensure seamless interoperability.

Shay McGuinness, medical director of NZ Air Ambulance Service (NZAAS), says aeromedical teams operate remotely and interact with hospital staff across the country, so need to communicate private patient data easily and securely.

The secure storage and transfer of documents means a captured image of an intensive care monitor showing vital signs or blood-test results can be shared without having to type the results into a messaging application, saving time and eliminating transcription errors, he explains.

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“Celo connects our medical crews with our clinical governance team. This has improved situational awareness for our multi-disciplinary crews to ensure seamless bed to bed patient transfer,” he says.

“Other legacy platforms have some add-ons to enable a level of this; however, Celo is purpose-built for enabling medical professionals to communicate securely and in line with HIPAA standards.”

NZAAS also has clinical teams operating worldwide in challenging environments including onboard commercial aircraft and in developing countries and remote environments.

“Often traditional voice communications are not available and slow bandwidth or geo-restrictions limit normal communication applications,” McGuinness says.

Celo was also recently deployed across Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders, which has gone live with its solution across their teams in over 86 countries.

Steve Vlok, Celo chief executive, says the New Zealand market remains a key focus as the place where it all started.

“We are truly honoured to unite with NZ Air Ambulance, as the country’s leading aeromedical provider. This partnership mirrors our resolute commitment to pioneering technology that generates tangible real-world impact,” he says.

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