There are a range of ways to access specialist healthcare in rural and remote areas. These include telehealth.

A telehealth qld service, such as Queensland Remote Telehealth Service (QTS), allows patients to be seen by medical specialists remotely. It can also support continuous care.

What is telehealth?



Telehealth is a modern form of healthcare where patients receive a consultation via telephone or video call. This can save time and can also help reduce the spread of illness.

Queensland is home to some of the world's best telehealth services, with a variety of models of care being developed across a range of health sectors. These include telehealth services for specialist burns care, maternity support, GP clinics and after hours services for rural and remote Queenslanders.

To understand how telehealth is perceived in Queensland, we undertook semistructured interviews with 47 residents of three rural towns in the Darling Downs region. The findings revealed that while people generally had awareness of telehealth, many still did not have a good understanding of how it could benefit them. They were also often hesitant to seek healthcare using telehealth. Despite these challenges, it appears that telehealth offers a promising opportunity to increase access to healthcare for individuals in rural areas.

Telehealth services in rural areas

Telehealth services connect patients in rural areas with medical specialists in larger centres. This can improve patient outcomes by providing timely access to health care.

Queensland is a large state with a diverse landscape. Its terrain ranges from the dry interior to a tropical climate in the north and Torres Strait islands.

In the state's rural regions, health care infrastructure is often inadequate and limited. The Queensland Specialist Outpatients Assistance Program (MSOPAP) helps people in rural areas to access specialist services.

Using telehealth services to provide clinical care and education can increase the capacity of clinicians in remote locations to confidently manage their patients, especially in the absence of a local specialist.

Developing and managing telehealth services requires time, patience, and close collaboration with clinicians and health service managers. It also requires a dedicated administrative support service (telehealth coordination) and strong clinical leadership.

Telehealth services in Chinchilla and Miles

In the Western Downs region, patients who have to travel hundreds of kilometres to see specialists in Brisbane will now be able to get their consultations online. The new service is being piloted in Chinchilla, Miles and Dalby.

The service is being delivered by the University of Queensland’s Centre for Online Health with support from QGC Pty Limited (QGC). Funding has been provided from the company’s $150 million Social Impact Management Plan for its liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, the Queensland Curtis LNG Project.

Using video conferencing, the new services will connect patients in participating medical centres in Miles, Chinchilla and Dalby with specialists in Toowoomba and Brisbane through telehealth. Deputy Director of the Centre for Online Health Associate Professor Anthony Smith said the service already had an overwhelmingly positive response from families in the Western Downs, who would otherwise have to travel long distances to see specialists.

Telehealth services in Dalby

Dalby is a vibrant regional town located in the Western Downs region of Queensland. Situated just 211 kilometres north west of Brisbane, it is close to Toowoomba and Roma.

Dalby and the surrounding area is renowned for its agribusiness, producing wheat, cotton, sorghum, barley, sunflowers, chickpeas and mung beans. It is also a centre for natural gas, coal and power generation.

Telehealth Brisbane is the use of telecommunications technologies to improve access, convenience and quality of care. It can be used by patients who live in rural and remote areas as well as those who do not have access to regular visits with their primary healthcare provider or specialist.

Telehealth services can be provided in a variety of ways. They can include video conferencing, remote patient monitoring (RPM), and mobile health apps. These methods can help people with chronic diseases manage their conditions remotely, and allow providers to see more patients in less time. They can also be used to help address the shortage of physicians and specialists in many regions of the world, particularly in developing nations.