Emergency Department, Northern Hospital Epping, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
School of Psychology and Public Health, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Emerg Med Australas. 2022 Dec;34(6):907-912. doi: 10.1111/1742-6723.14010. Epub 2022 May 15.
A new virtual ED service was introduced into a hospital network in the northern suburbs of Melbourne in response to changing needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. The 'virtual ED' utilises a telehealth model as a means of assessment for appropriately selected patients to facilitate either complete care or navigation into streamlined pathways for ongoing care, in some cases bypassing the ED entirely where appropriate. The proposed study aims to evaluate the implementation of the model and identify future improvement opportunities, assess the impact on traditional health service delivery processes and patient experience, and determine the acceptability of the 'virtual ED' model of care.
The present study will consist of a pre-post- implementation evaluation using the RE-AIM framework. Routine health service data will be collected for 6 months post-implementation of the virtual ED model and compared to 24 months prior to implementation. Prospective data will be collected using routinely collected and survey data. Interviews and focus groups will be conducted to understand consumer and clinician perspectives on barriers and enablers to implementation and adoption of the virtual ED.
Descriptive statistics will be used to describe the study population and key outcomes, including changes in ED presentations and length of stay. Thematic analysis will be conducted on transcribed interviews and focus group data. This will be triangulated with data collected from patient feedback surveys.
This project will support the delivery of care to ED patients by evaluating the 'virtual ED' model of care.
为应对 COVID-19 大流行期间不断变化的需求，墨尔本北郊的一家医院网络引入了一种新的虚拟急诊服务。“虚拟 ED”利用远程医疗模式对经过适当选择的患者进行评估，以促进对适当患者的全面护理或引导其进入更顺畅的持续护理途径，在某些情况下，在适当的情况下完全绕过 ED。拟议的研究旨在评估该模型的实施情况并确定未来的改进机会，评估对传统卫生服务提供流程和患者体验的影响，并确定“虚拟 ED”护理模式的可接受性。
本研究将使用 RE-AIM 框架进行实施前后评估。将在虚拟 ED 模型实施后收集 6 个月的常规卫生服务数据，并与实施前 24 个月的数据进行比较。将使用常规收集和调查数据收集前瞻性数据。将进行访谈和焦点小组讨论，以了解消费者和临床医生对实施和采用虚拟 ED 的障碍和促进因素的看法。
将使用描述性统计数据描述研究人群和主要结果，包括 ED 就诊人数和住院时间的变化。将对转录的访谈和焦点小组数据进行主题分析。这将与从患者反馈调查中收集的数据进行三角验证。
该项目将通过评估“虚拟 ED”护理模式来支持 ED 患者的护理。
