What this is: how virtual care fills the gaps between visits from doctors and visiting clinicians, and supports after-hours cover.
Who it's for: clinic and nurse managers, ACCHO leaders, and the staff who hold the service together between visits.
The gap between visits
Many remote services run on a mix of a local team and clinicians who come and go: a doctor who visits weekly, a locum on a short contract, or fly-in-fly-out specialists. The care is often good while they are there. The risk sits in the gaps, when a patient needs input and the next visit is days or weeks away.
Virtual care closes that gap. The local team stays on site every day, the virtual hub is available between visits, and visiting clinicians add periodic depth in person.
How the layers work together
- The local team is the constant. They are on site every day and know the patients and the community.
- The virtual hub fills the gaps. Between visits, the local team can reach a remote GP or specialist for advice, a consult, or to review a patient who cannot wait.
- Visiting clinicians add depth in person. Periodic on-site visits build relationships and trust, which makes the virtual consults in between work better. Time on the ground and time on screen reinforce each other.
After-hours and on-call
Remote staff should not carry urgent decisions alone overnight. A virtual on-call arrangement lets the local team reach a clinician after hours for advice or an urgent consult, which reduces pressure on staff and can avoid an unnecessary transfer. Agree in advance who to call, for what, and how, and make sure the pathway is clear and reliable.
Briefing a locum or visiting clinician
A clinician who is new to your service works better with a short briefing:
- How virtual care works at your service, and the equipment available.
- Who the patient-end team are and what they can do.
- The escalation and after-hours pathway.
- The community context and how to work in a culturally safe way.
- How to document and hand over before they leave, so the next clinician picks up cleanly.
Continuity is the point
The aim is a service that feels continuous to the patient, whoever is on that day. When the local team, the virtual hub and visiting clinicians work as one, a patient gets steady care rather than care that stops and starts with the roster.
Need help?
- Visionflex support: visionflex.com/support | support@visionflex.com | +61 2 8914 4000 (9am to 5pm AEST)
- See also: The patient-end role; ISBAR and A to G clinical handover; Specialist and allied health access
Visionflex acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and pays respect to Elders past, present and emerging.