Enhancing Aotearoa, New Zealand’s Free Healthline Service through Image Upload Technology

Simple item page
aut.relation.endpage10
aut.relation.journalInternational Journal of Telemedicine and Applications
aut.relation.startpage1
aut.relation.volume2024
dc.contributor.authorWilson, Miriama K
dc.contributor.authorPienaar, Fiona
dc.contributor.authorLarge, Ruth
dc.contributor.authorWright, Matt
dc.contributor.authorTodd, Verity F
dc.contributor.editorSarwar, Nadeem
dc.date.accessioned2024-02-07T23:04:23Z
dc.date.available2024-02-07T23:04:23Z
dc.date.issued2024-02-02
dc.description.abstractBackground. Healthline is one of the 39 free telehealth services that Whakarongorau Aotearoa/New Zealand Telehealth Services provides to New Zealanders. In early 2021, an image upload system for viewing service user-uploaded images was implemented into the Healthline service. Aims. The aim of this research was to understand the utilisation of Healthline’s image upload system by clinicians and service users in New Zealand. Methods. This is a retrospective observational study analysing Healthline image upload data over a two-year period: March 2021 through to December 2022. A total of 40,045 images were analysed, including demographics of the service users who uploaded an image: ethnicity, age group, and area of residence. The outcome or recommendation of the Healthline call was also assessed based on whether an image was included. Results. Images uploaded accounted for 6.0% of total Healthline calls (<jats:inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M1"><mi>n</mi><mo>=</mo><mn>671,564</mn></math></jats:inline-formula>). This research found that more service users were advised to go to an Emergency Department if they did not upload an image compared to service users who used the tool (13.5% vs. 7.7%), whereas a higher proportion of service users were given a lower acuity outcome if they included an image, including visiting an Urgent Care (24.0% vs. 16.9%) and GP (36.7% vs. 24.3%). Conclusion. Service users who did not upload an image had a higher proportion of Emergency Department outcomes than service users who did use the tool. This image upload tool has shown the potential to decrease stress on Emergency Departments around Aotearoa, New Zealand, through increased lower acuity outcomes.
dc.identifier.citationInternational Journal of Telemedicine and Applications, ISSN: 1687-6415 (Print); 1687-6423 (Online), Hindawi Limited, 2024, 1-10. doi: 10.1155/2024/6644580
dc.identifier.doi10.1155/2024/6644580
dc.identifier.issn1687-6415
dc.identifier.issn1687-6423
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10292/17195
dc.languageen
dc.publisherHindawi Limited
dc.relation.urihttps://www.hindawi.com/journals/ijta/2024/6644580/
dc.rightsCopyright © 2024 Miriama K. Wilson et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
dc.rights.accessrightsOpenAccess
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.subject0806 Information Systems
dc.subject0903 Biomedical Engineering
dc.subject1117 Public Health and Health Services
dc.subject4203 Health services and systems
dc.titleEnhancing Aotearoa, New Zealand’s Free Healthline Service through Image Upload Technology
dc.typeJournal Article
pubs.elements-id537709
Files
Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Enhancing Aotearoa, New Zealand’s Free Healthline Service through Image Upload Technology.pdf
Size:
1.03 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Journal article
Download
Collections
School of Clinical Sciences - Te Kura Mātai Haumanu