Rural residents can benefit from new telemedicine system

SAN DIEGO — It has long been a challenge for San Diego County’s rural residents to be able to access a full scope of clinical and specialty services. Many rural patients are low-income, medically uninsured and suffer from a disproportionately high rate of chronic diseases, but they are also geographically isolated and often lack adequate transportation. For those who have the means, visiting a hospital or specialist would require a 90-minute drive and most patients are unable or unwilling to do so.

In order to address this problem, the Council of Community Clinics (CCC) applied for and was awarded a grant from the California Telemedicine and eHealth Center (CTEC) to extend telemedicine services to community clinics and health centers in the rural areas of San Diego, Riverside and Imperial Counties. The Council of Community Clinics represents and supports 17 community health center corporations operating at over 75 sites. These clinics provide over one million visits to over 410,000 patients.

Chief Executive Officer Vicky Penland explains that the grant money was used to purchase videoconferencing equipment and establish the infrastructure and network that now gives rural residents improved access to healthcare in remote sections of these counties. The technology also brings expanded educational resources and training capabilities to rural healthcare providers.

Through the use of videoconferencing, a patient and their physician sit in an exam room or small conference room in one of the rural clinics, and they are connected with a specialist in another location who provides a real-time consultation. This type of cyber arrangement means rural patients don’t have to travel long distances to see a specialist and, in most cases, will have access to specialty care and other services where none was previously available.

Five community health center organizations with 13 sites are currently participating in the project. These organizations are Borrego Community Health Foundation; Clinicas de Salud del Pueblo, Inc .; La Maestra Community Health Centers; Mountain Health and Community Services; and Sycuan Medical/Dental Center. Together, these clinics saw over 40,000 low-income and underserved patients in 2002, almost one-half of whom are uninsured.

“As far as I know, we’re the only healthcare providers in the county using telemedicine and videoconferencing technology to improve access to this extent for rural patients,” said Susan Leonard, Director of Information Technology at the CCC. “This technology is enabling patients to get access to specialty care such as ob/gyn services and podiatry, diabetes education, as well as psychological services and support groups.” Leonard said that both staff and patients are embracing the new capacities telemedicine affords them.

As for its use in training, videoconferencing is allowing rural healthcare providers to undergo training remotely using today’s telecommunications technologies, thereby reducing or eliminating the need to spend time traveling to training sessions and conferences.

Penland further states, “Community clinics have been successful in utilizing technology in order to improve access to quality healthcare, not only through videoconferencing, but also through their sophisticated patient registration and billing systems, as well as their diabetes registries and data warehouses. The technology is a means to an end, which is improved health for community clinic patients. Advancements such as these are the reasons community clinics are the providers of choice for so many patients.”

For additional information, please call (619) 542-4300 or visit http://www.ccc-sd.org.