When clinically appropriate, virtual care can be used to bring together people from multiple locations, providing an easy way to connect and share information with your patients, their loved ones and your colleagues.
Virtual care is designed to complement and enhance access to in-person care. As well as offering more choice, virtual care may sometimes be the best option to meet a patient’s needs.
Key principles
The principles of virtual care have been developed to complement existing clinical principles and models of care.
These principles will support those developing or redesigning a model of care to provide high-quality, person-centred care that is digitally enabled.
- Virtual care is a way (a modality) of providing healthcare that is enabled by technology.
- The consumer journey may include in-person care and a variety of virtual care modalities. This care should be evidence-based, clinically appropriate and safe.
- Virtual care can encourage integrated care that is aligned with consumer preferences and bridges the distance to connect other providers, as well as family and carers to support the consumer’s care.
- The use of virtual modalities to provide clinical care must reflect clinical standards and guidelines.
- Consumers should only be offered virtual care when and where it is safe and clinically appropriate.
- Clinicians should use approved devices and platforms to ensure safety and privacy.
- All incidents and complaints must be reported in IMS+ in line with NSW Health processes.
- The integration of virtual care into clinical practice must be embedded into existing clinical governance to ensure high-quality, safe, person-centred care.
- Clinical care standards, policies, guidelines and directives that apply to in-person consultations also apply to healthcare provided virtually, regardless of the modality and location of care.
- Where clinically appropriate, clinicians should consider and discuss how virtual care can support a consumer’s needs, reassessing these regularly and discuss requirements to do this effectively.
- Suitability of virtual care should be discussed with a consumer and, where relevant, the parent or carer to determine availability and access to support; internet connection; data; devices and appropriate environments. There should be no assumptions about suitability.
- Understanding a consumer’s level of health and digital literacy is important. Clinicians should recognise their role in being able to enhance this and empower consumers.
- Consumers should be involved as equal partners, supporting the co-design of new models of care to ensure they are consumer friendly, accessible and appropriately aligned with consumer preferences.
- Consumers should be provided with appropriate digital health support. This should include (but not limited to) education, training, troubleshooting support, and user-friendly accessible guides to promote acceptance and use of virtual care.
- Clinical services should be provided with expert advice, in-person support and access to multi-modality training and resources to embed virtual care into clinical practice. This should include connection with experts, such as the local virtual care manager and clinical champions, and published materials from NSW Health pillar agencies.
- Virtual care training should reflect digital health principles and include communication skills, such as engagement and presence; and training to use the relevant technology, devices and systems to provide care.
- The technology should integrate into clinical workflows.
- The appropriate technology should be available and assessed as being ‘fit for purpose’.
- Clinical teams should use platforms, devices and systems that are approved by NSW Health.
- Virtual care does not replace in-person care.
- Virtual care enables integrated care, with the capacity to bring together the broader clinical team.
- The use of technology in clinical care should become a standard offering, where clinically appropriate.
- New service models can be designed to support scale and sustainability, while addressing system challenges.
- The use of virtual care can support the workforce by providing agile and flexible working arrangements that can reduce fatigue and promote wellbeing and retention.
- Reporting the mode of delivery keeps the system well informed.
- Districts are encouraged to embed statewide surveys and patient-reported measures to build on virtual care evidence and data.
- Service evaluations should be shared to support efficacy of virtual care, acceptance and uptake.
How to deliver virtual care
Telephone
The use of telephone to support and deliver health services is the most common virtual service contact mode reported across all local health districts and specialty health networks in NSW.
Videoconferencing
The use of videoconferencing to support clinical care provides a real-time audio and video link between multiple participants.
Store and forward
The use of email is a tool to communicate between patients, carers and healthcare providers to support patient care.
Remote monitoring
Remote monitoring uses mobile technology to collect and send medical and healthcare data to an app, device or service outside the traditional clinical setting.
Apps and websites
There are a wide range of websites and apps available to support forms of virtual care functionality, including secure messaging, phone calls, videoconferencing, remote monitoring and educational information.
The benefits of virtual care
Incorporating virtual care into clinical practice can offer many benefits:
For patients and their families
- Opportunity to receive care closer to their home, support network and community
- Increased access, convenience and choice with shorter waiting times and less disruption
- Reduced travel time, cost and inconvenience
- Opportunity to receive care on country
- More equitable and timely access to services to improve continuity of care
- Access to specialist services otherwise not available in their area
- Supports connection to loved ones through technology
- Supports family members and carers to get involved and play an active role in a person’s healthcare
For healthcare professionals
- Enables access to specialist services and support
- Improved clinical networks and professional collaboration
- Reduces unnecessary travel and time away from commitments
- Supports flexible service delivery models and multidisciplinary care
- Supports models that promote integration across healthcare
- Provides a support network no matter where they are located across NSW
- Increased professional development opportunities.
For the health system
- Opportunities to provide more efficient care
- Reduced transfers and length of stay
- More collaborative ways of working.
Virtual care: Fiona and Killian’s story
Contact us
