title: Telehealth for paediatric burn patients in rural areas: a retrospective audit of activity and cost savings.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Since 2005, the Western Australian paediatric burn unit has provided a state-wide clinical consultancy and support service for the assessment and management of acute and rehabilitative burn patients via its telehealth service. Since then, the use of this telehealth service has steadily increased as it has become imbedded in the model of care for paediatric burn patients. Primarily, the service involves acute and long term patient reviews conducted by the metropolitan-located burn unit in contact with health practitioners, advising patients and their families who reside outside the metropolitan area thereby avoiding unnecessary transfers and inpatient bed days. A further benefit of the paediatric burn service using telehealth is more efficient use of tertiary level burn unit beds, with only those patients meeting clinical criteria for admission being transferred.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To conduct a retrospective audit of avoided transfers and bed days in 2005/06-2012/13 as a result of the use of the paediatric Burns Telehealth Service and estimate their cost savings in 2012/13.
  
  
  METHODS
  A retrospective chart audit identified activity, avoided unnecessary acute and scar review patient transfers, inpatient bed days and their associated avoided costs to the tertiary burn unit and patient travel funding.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Over the period 2005/06-2012/13 the audit identified 4,905 avoided inpatient bed days, 364 avoided acute patient transfers and 1,763 avoided follow up review transfers for a total of 1,312 paediatric burn patients as a result of this telehealth service. This paper presents the derivation of these outcomes and an estimation of their cost savings in 2012/13 of AUD 1.89million.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study demonstrates avoided patient transfers, inpatient bed days and associated costs as the result of an integrated burns telehealth service.
authors: Princess Margaret Hospital for Children, Total Care Burns Unit, Roberts Road, Subiaco 6008 WA, Australia; Edith Cowan University, School of Nursing & Midwifery, 270 Joondalup Drive, Joondalup 6027 WA, Australia. Electronic address: Tania.McWilliams@health.wa.gov.au.
authors: Tania
authors: T
authors: McWilliams
authors: Edith Cowan University, School of Nursing & Midwifery, 270 Joondalup Drive, Joondalup 6027 WA, Australia. Electronic address: j.hendricks@ecu.edu.au.
authors: Joyce
authors: J
authors: Hendricks
authors: Edith Cowan University, School of Nursing & Midwifery, 270 Joondalup Drive, Joondalup 6027 WA, Australia. Electronic address: d.twigg@ecu.edu.au.
authors: Di
authors: D
authors: Twigg
authors: Princess Margaret Hospital for Children, Total Care Burns Unit, Roberts Road, Subiaco 6008 WA, Australia. Electronic address: Fiona.Wood@health.wa.gov.au.
authors: Fiona
authors: F
authors: Wood
authors: Edith Cowan University, Centre for Innovative Practice, 270 Joondalup Drive, Joondalup 6027 WA, Australia. Electronic address: m.giles@ecu.edu.au.
authors: Margaret
authors: M
authors: Giles
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods; D002056:Burns / Q000191:economics / Q000628:therapy*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D054869:Clinical Audit; D017046:Cost Savings; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000191:economics; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000191:economics; D008297:Male; D010360:Patient Transfer / Q000191:economics; D010372:Pediatrics / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012424:Rural Population; D017216:Telemedicine / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods*; D014904:Western Australia
keywords: Burns; Rural; Telehealth; Telemedicine