Iowa Specialty Hospital

Iowa Specialty Hospital Partners with University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics to Launch Telemedicine

March 5, 2015

eConsult Service Brings Medical Specialist Care to Belmond & Clarion ER’s with Real Time Video

Belmond & Clarion, Iowa (February 24, 2015) University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics are now more accessible to Iowa Specialty Hospital and their area residents than ever before.  Iowa Specialty Hospital is now able to offer the eConsult service, connecting their Emergency Departments with specialists at UI Hospitals and Clinics for emergency consultations.  The eConsult service uses a secure, face-to-face video conferencing connection from Iowa Specialty Hospital to the University of Iowa to help diagnose medical conditions and recommend appropriate actions in emergency situations.  

The primary goal is to help reduce the number of transfers by providing specialist advice remotely and allowing patients to receive care, closer to home.  The hospital-to-hospital solution comes at no additional cost to patients and their families.  Rather, patients may avoid an unnecessary transfer which could result in cost savings.

It takes just a few minutes for a staff member at a regional hospital to connect with a UI physician using The eConsult Cart, a movable video conferencing station, and begin a consultation.  More than twenty UI Physicians and Residents are trained to answer eConsult calls that come in from Iowa regional hospitals.  A dedicated emergency department staff is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week at the University of Iowa. 

Currently, the eConsult service is offered at Iowa Specialty Hospital for emergency medicine only.  The eConsult service is one of the first major outreach initiatives from the UI Hospitals and Clinics’ eHealth + eNovation Center,  lead by Dr. Patrick Brophy, to expand telemedicine offerings.   Iowa Specialty Hospital and several other regional hospitals in Iowa have implemented the eConsult service or are slated to launch the program in the coming months. 

Iowa Specialty Hospital is proud to be affiliated with the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.
 

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