July 2, 2024Northern Health’s Victorian Virtual Specialist Consult (VVSC) service is offering more specialty care across the state in an effort to address equity and access barriers.
The service has expanded since its initial conception as the MCVC (Medical Community Virtual Consults) to provide direct consultations to patients across Victoria who previously faced long wait and travel times.
The collab-consult model offering community healthcare providers access to a free 20-minute case conference (with or without the patient) is still the main stay of the service, aiming to provide timely access to specialist expertise and support capacity building in the community.
The list of specialties on offer has grown from the initial general medical pilot to over 16 different specialty including dermatology, gastroenterology, endocrinology, neurology, wound care, allied health, psychiatry, paediatrics, geriatrics, paediatric allergy, asthma and continence, with more to come.
The VVSC also offers a response to support Northern Health’s waiting lists. GPs are invited to participate in a collab-consult, and identified patients from waiting lists are redirected to a single virtual appointment to allow early assessment, initial investigation and management to occur, whilst waiting definitive care.
‘The success of our service lays mainly in the hands of passionate clinicians who recognise state-wide gaps in service and design and implement innovative models of care to plug these gaps,” said Dr Joanna Lawrence, VVSC Director.
Cassandra Bramston, Project Manager, who drives the operational side of the model, emphasises that establishing partnerships with specialist clinics and department heads has been pivotal to our success.
“Medical specialties are attracted by the chance to serve, not just patients in the northern catchment, but those across the state. We offer a distinct opportunity to support primary care physicians in managing complex patients within their communities, delivering excellent outcomes for patients,” she said.
Local referral pathways also exist for Northern Health patients requiring one off reviews post discharge. To refer, visit www.vvsc.org.au
To discuss opportunities to partner with the VVSC team, please contact Jo (Joanna.Lawrence@nh.org.au) and Cassie (Cassandra.Bramston@nh.org.au).
Pictured in featured image: Vivienne King, VVED clinician.
