Cardiovascular Telemedicine Program in Rural Australia

This letter describes the implementation and outcomes of a telemedicine program (Tele-Cardiac Investigations) deployed across two rural regions of Australia with limited access to cardiovascular diagnostic services. Using remote access and live video technologies, clinicians from the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital supervised exercise stress tests and 24-hour Holter monitoring at 11 local facilities. Over a 12-month post-implementation period, diagnostic throughput increased by 42% (516 to 734 tests), including a doubling of tests performed for Indigenous patients (63 to 127). The program significantly reduced the total time from referral to report by 71.1% (79.70 to 23.04 days), shortened average wait times for testing and result reporting, and eliminated travel for 91.3% of Holter monitoring patients saving an average of 502 km in round-trip distance. The initiative demonstrated scalable clinical benefits, particularly for Indigenous communities, highlighting telemedicine’s potential to address disparities in access and outcomes.

This letter describes the implementation and outcomes of a telemedicine program (Tele-Cardiac Investigations) deployed across two rural regions of Australia with limited access to cardiovascular diagnostic services. Using remote access and live video technologies, clinicians from the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital supervised exercise stress tests and 24-hour Holter monitoring at 11 local facilities. Over a 12-month post-implementation period, diagnostic throughput increased by 42% (516 to 734 tests), including a doubling of tests performed for Indigenous patients (63 to 127). The program significantly reduced the total time from referral to report by 71.1% (79.70 to 23.04 days), shortened average wait times for testing and result reporting, and eliminated travel for 91.3% of Holter monitoring patients saving an average of 502 km in round-trip distance. The initiative demonstrated scalable clinical benefits, particularly for Indigenous communities, highlighting telemedicine’s potential to address disparities in access and outcomes.