Onscreen, a nurse from Avera talks about the eEmergency services now offered at North Shore Health. RNs Amy Lacina and Shannon Curran examine a breathing tube and the machine it connects to that was installed by Avera.
Welcome to the brave new world of telemedicine. Two nurses from Sioux Falls, South Dakota happily introduced the Avera emergency services to the press on Tuesday, September 26, and if they were 500 miles away, with just the push of a button, they were also right there in the emergency room at North Shore Health.
With the use of a two-way, high definition video/audio link that connects North Shore Health’s two emergency rooms to the Sioux Fallsbased Avera Health, the two nurses not only could see and talk to the audience but see the entire room as well. And, the audience could see and talk to the nurses at their work station in South Dakota.
The ability to communicate visually and verbally in real time allows Avera doctors and nurses to “be in the room” when called upon to assist with an emergency.
That’s a big plus, said North Shore Health RN Amy Lacina, especially in cases that you don’t see very often. Avera can call up a doctor or nurse with expertise that you might need in a pinch. A second set (or more) of eyes and knowledge that can assist to help a person in crisis is reassuring, added Lacina.
“Our telehealth partners at Avera will initiate the contact with a helicopter team if we need them to,” Lacina said. “And provide them with all the information they need to take care of the patient.”
“eEmergency gives us the ability to extend and enhance the level of healthcare in our community,” said Administrator Kimber Wraalstad. “It gives us better access to the same type of specialists available in Duluth or Minneapolis/ St. Paul, enabling us to deliver better care, right here in our community, and keeps patients here whenever possible.”
Avera eEmergency nurses and doctors aren’t just telemedicine specialists. They work shifts at the Sioux Falls hospital to maintain their skills.
“I can’t think of anything negative to say about having this service,” said Shannon.
Having access to board-certified emergency physicians 24 hours a day that can supply additional support, especially during multiple emergencies, can only give the patients better odds of getting the care they need, said Wraalstad.
While medical staff work on an emergency room patient, Lacina said Avera’s staff work on documentation, place orders and can arrange transport for the patient if needed. Having that help is a big weight off the shoulders of the attending staff and allows them to focus all of their attention on the patient.
On August 23 North Shore Health went “live” with Avera. So far Lacina and Wraalstad said they haven’t had any negative reports about the service, but instead have heard positive things from patients and medical staff about eEmergency.
This collaborative approach allows local caregivers to focus on patient care
Because Avera set up the two brand new emergency rooms at North Shore Health, their nurses and doctors can assist local nurses or doctors to find things that might be eluding them when they are frantically busy with a victim of illness or accident. Again, Lacina said knowing that is a comfort to her when she is concentrating on keeping someone alive.
Avera eEmergency operates in 10 Midwestern states and as of this week has 147 rural hospitals connected to its services. Next week the 148th hospital is coming online.
North Shore Health is a 16-bed critical access hospital staffed with an emergency physician on nights and weekends. Like most rural hospitals, it is thin on staff at times, and with eEemergency help, knowledgeable medical personnel is as close as the push of a red button.
Although there are cameras and microphones in the emergency rooms, nothing is recorded, said Wraalstad.
One Avera telemedicine nurse said she worked on one case of urgency that lasted four and one-half hours. But that was an exception. Typically hospitals need their help for about ten minutes, she said.
Helping to pay the cost to run the service at North Shore Health is a $203,000 grant from the Helmsley Foundation, said Wraalstad.
Helmsley Foundation has also donated a hefty sum to Avera eEmergency, hence the name “eHelm” at the Sioux Falls office complex.
Leave a Reply