![]() We’ve experienced a significant decrease in unnecessary emergency room and urgent care utilization among patients who’ve used the service. The benefits are also evident for health care broadly. And, the rural hospital was able to retain the revenue for caring for the baby, helping it remain economically viable. The parents were able to remain in their community, surrounded by their support system, instead of making a seven-hour round-trip of more than 400 miles every time they wanted to see their baby in the NICU. That avoided a helicopter transfer that would have cost more than $18,000. The baby obtained a critical care consultation that allowed him to stay in the facility where he was born instead of being transferred to a newborn intensive care unit (NICU) at one of Intermountain’s tertiary care facilities. Recently, a baby born in a rural community with a hole in his lung received telehealth care using Intermountain’s 24/7 on-demand system. ![]() ![]() Telehealth-connected specialists can communicate directly with patients and local care providers and receive real-time updates on medical conditions. We have ensured that the televisions in patient rooms throughout our system and affiliated hospitals, in both rural and urban settings, have cameras to allow for telehealth care, and our hospitals also have carts with cameras that can be wheeled into rooms as needed. We have a 24/7 telehealth center in Salt Lake City with a full-time staff, plus about 500 care providers on call who are in a wide range of medical specialties. But our Connect Care Pro operation provides 40 telehealth services in seven western states to many facilities that are not part of Intermountain. Intermountain operates 24 hospitals and 160 clinics in Utah and Idaho - a footprint that’s about the size of Italy. Community members get better care that’s based on evidence-based best practices. Local hospitals retain vital revenue and enhance their services. The patient receives expert treatment locally without the added risk and cost of a transfer to a bigger hospital. Telehealth transforms those situations to everyone’s benefit. Innovative ideas for improving the patient experience. ![]() Similarly, social workers, crisis workers, and care managers for chronic diseases are sometimes not available in smaller communities, requiring patients to travel hours for basic mental health and primary care. Local caregivers don’t get the opportunity to learn from specialists about caring for complicated patients. Patients are frequently transferred to distant acute care centers to receive specialized care. And even when they do, there are often too few to ensure constant coverage. Community hospitals, with low volumes and limited budgets, usually don’t have specialists like neonatologists, neurologists, and cardiologists on staff. In rural America, patients are often hundreds of miles from the care they need. The results we’ve experienced hold promise for rural communities throughout America. Intermountain Healthcare is addressing the pressing needs of people who live in rural areas through telehealth, which uses secure video and audio technology to connect care providers in smaller health care facilities with specialists in large hospitals. But those same landscapes can make it difficult for people to access health care. Rural communities, often amid stunning and isolated landscapes, are a defining feature of much of the United States.
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