Telehealth Improves the Quality of Care at CCHS

DAYTON--The quality of healthcare received at the Columbia County Health System has gotten a shot in the arm thanks to a Kadlec Medical Center grant that provided CCHS with three telehealth units. One is installed in the Dayton General Hospital Emergency Department, and there is one in the Waitsburg Clinic and one in Columbia Family Clinic.

The telehealth unit is a rolling cart with a camera and computer that can be dialed to reach a consulting physician "anywhere in the world" to help with diagnosis and treatment, according to Emergency Department physician Dr. Lewis Neace.

The telehealth unit has been used in the ED for the last six months for the diagnosis and treatment of stroke in eight to 12 patients, said CCHS CEO Shane McGuire.

"Stroke is such a time-sensitive diagnosis. If they are a candidate for tissue plasminogen activator (TPA), you have a window. The goal is to get the patient the drug within the window. We're looking at seconds," said McGuire about the importance of administering the clot-busting drug.

"It is not limited to stroke. It is just the first program we have brought up that has a lot of value here," McGuire said. "We are looking at a whole host of services."

McGuire said he can see telehealth applications in CCHS's future for care in the areas of dermatology, psychology, and cardiology.

McGuire said he has also spoken with Kadlec Medical Center's director of outreach, development and telemedicine about the possibility of using the hospitalist at their facility in Richland to perform rounds of inpatients at Dayton General Hospital.

McGuire said the cart can be rolled from room to room with the hospitalist checking in remotely. "We could use them for our own doctors to converse with patients at home," McGuire added.

"Some would say the future of rural health care is telehealth," McGuire added. "There are not enough doctors or specialists to go around, so the ability for you to bring in a doctor in a moment's notice is important."