Released on September 27, 2016
A remote presence technology pilot focusing on pediatric patients in Pelican Narrows is showing promise. Rural and Remote Health Minister Greg Ottenbreit visited the Pelican Narrows health facility today where he attended a demonstration of the technology through a live connection with Saskatoon.“This innovative project uses cutting edge technology to put patients first. It allows for patients to access medical specialists without travelling from their northern communities.” Ottenbreit said. “I thank all the partners in this pilot for their vision, leadership and excellent collaboration. Our Government will continue to invest in innovative approaches that benefit patients and increase the sustainability of our health care system.”
Remote presence technology enables a health care provider to perform real-time assessment, diagnosis and management of patients from a remote location through a robot.
In 2014 the Government of Saskatchewan provided funding to Northern Medical Services to purchase the equipment for this pilot. Pelican Narrows was selected due to its remote location and large population of children.
The pilot was led by Dr. Ivar Mendez, Fred H. Wigmore Professor and Unified Head of the Department of Surgery at the University of Saskatchewan, in partnership with Northern Medical Services and its Director, Dr. Veronica McKinney, and the Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation.
“Remote presence technology has the potential to be transformative in improving access to primary and specialized health care to underserviced remote and rural communities in Saskatchewan,” Dr. Mendez said. “The pilot project in Pelican Narrows has demonstrated that 63% of acutely ill children could be treated effectively in their own community by using this technology. Before the availability of remote presence, those children would have been transported to Saskatoon for treatment.”
“Access to care that has come to be expected in most of our province does not exist for many of our Northern communities, the vast majority of which are Indigenous,” Dr. McKinney said. “This technology allows care to be delivered literally where the patient is. It also allows for relationship building between the provider and the patient, as well as between the providers who are local and those at a distance. This has huge impact in that it is empowering for the patient and their family, and builds a true circle of trust and care team between sites.”
As part of the pilot, a pediatric intensivist in Saskatoon, Dr. Tanya Holt and a nurse practitioner in Pelican Narrows, Rachel Johnson used remote presence technology to assess, manage and triage pediatric patients who would otherwise be considered for transport to more specialized or higher levels of care.
“There is one pediatric specialized transport team in Saskatchewan and 36% of children 1-4 years of age are living in remote and rural communities,” Dr. Holt said. “Therefore, access to specialized pediatric care and transfer is difficult. The challenges of distance and time in acute pediatric care can be tempered with robotic remote presence technology. We demonstrated that robotic technology can refine pre-transport clinical decision-making, reducing the need for pediatric specialized transport while easing the burden on patients, families, and healthcare systems.”
“Every day I witness the health disparities that our patients experience as a result of the distance to specialized services,” nurse practitioner Rachel Johnson said. “I have experienced first-hand the far-reaching benefits of using remote presence technology for our patients, their families, community members, and the nursing team at our Health Centre. The application of this technology is almost limitless, and it truly has the potential to transform health service delivery, across the entire province.”
“The robot is good to use because we can see the specialist right away instead of having to drive down for six hours,” parent Vanessa Linklater-McCallum said. “Sometimes when we have to leave, it can be hard to get child care for the other children, so being able to see the specialist by the robot means we don’t always have to leave the community. Two of my kids have been seen when they were really sick, and they were diagnosed right away and the treatment was started right away. As a parent, I get relief knowing they are getting the best care they need in our own community. I would really like to continue to use the robot and hopefully get more services through the robot into our community.”
Based on results of the pilot in Pelican Narrows and to further improve access to health care for patients in rural and remote locations, government has committed an additional $500,000 to expand the use of remote presence technology in Saskatchewan’s north.
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For more information, contact:
Tyler McMurchy
Health
Regina
Phone: 306-787-4083
Email: tmcmurchy@health.gov.sk.ca
Angela White
Department of Surgery - Communications College of Medicine, University of Saskatchewan
Saskatoon
Phone: 306-966-7323
Email: surgery.communications@usask.ca