The New South Wales state government is set to launch an online video chat service connecting people aged 16 years and over with doctors and nurses to ease hospital wait times and divert as many as 85,000 people from emergency departments each year.
Health Minister Ryan Park announced that the VirtualADULTS scheme will begin operating in December.
People with health concerns can access this service by calling HealthDirect on 1800 022 222, where a registered nurse will assess their condition, and, if appropriate, refer them to the virtual care service.
Until now, if the matter could not be resolved over the phone, the only options for the nurse were to tell the patient to book an appointment with their GP or to go to the emergency department.
HealthDirect will now be able to refer suitable cases to the new service, which will handle conditions such as coughs, colds, fevers, respiratory symptoms, vomiting and diarrhoea, minor infections, and rashes.
The service uses video conferencing technology to connect patients with a team of clinicians who will provide assessments and expert advice.
Statewide Coverage by 2025
VirtualADULTS will initially be based in two central hubs across metropolitan and regional NSW, servicing local patients. By late 2025, the service will be accessible across the state.The Sydney hub will launch in December, and the regional one will commence early next year.
The initiative builds on the success of the virtualKIDS Urgent Care Service, which was expanded across all of NSW in December 2023. Since then, over 10,000 children have received consultations, avoiding unnecessary hospital visits.
VirtualADULTS is part of a broader $171.4 million investment in virtual care, including services for mental health and specialist consultations.
Together, they aim to provide advice to 180,000 people in their own homes.
“Virtual care has made tremendous progress, accelerated in part by the pandemic, and it is becoming an increasingly embraced model of care, allowing people to be treated from the comfort of home,” Park said.
Additional Investments in Health Services
The Minns government has also spent $100 million on urgent care services, expected to help 114,000 patients by providing care outside of hospitals.A further $70 million will be used to expand emergency department short-stay units to improve patient flow and reduce wait times by nearly 80,000 hours.
Other efforts to clear more hospital places include $31.4 million to expand the “Hospital in the Home” scheme, allowing over 3,500 additional patients each year to be cared for in their home rather than a hospital bed, and $53.9 million to improve patient flow and discharge planning by identifying suitable patients for discharge with the necessary support.The state government is also spending $15.1 million on an ambulance matrix that provides real-time hospital data, helping paramedics transport patients to emergency departments with greater capacity and reduced wait times.
