Wikimedia Commons/Alex Proimos
Wikimedia Commons/Alex Proimos
A southeast Iowa hospital took the needed steps to modernize the hospital by installing a telehealth system, according to KTVO.
The telehealth system is known as the Avera E-Care system. The E-Care system was officially activated in February at Van Buren County Hospital in Keosauqua, Iowa.
Dr. William Felegi, a top emergency medicine physician, said this system will supply the medical facility with doctors, nurses and other medical staff who specialized in medical emergencies.
He said Avera E-Care will play an important role in the hospital. Van Buren County Hospital specializes as a "critical access" hospital.
Felegi said he is a board-certified physician who works a 48-hour shift. He added that the other shifts are covered by "advanced practitioners" like nurses and PAs.
"What the Avera system allows us to do, is it allows any provider to immediately have telemedicine hook up with both audio and visual to be able to evaluate a patient with the provider, but the person on the other end is also a board-certified emergency physician," Felegi told KTVO.
He said with the push of a button, ER staff have immediate access to many physicians and nurses who have been trained in emergency medicine and procedures.
After the staff press the button, the E-Care team will turn on a camera. The medical staff linked to the system can then zoom in and out and view everything happening in the room. Additionally, they can view the monitors that show the vital signs of the patient.
Felegi said a microphone will enable the staff and the professionals who are linked via E-Care to communicate back and forth.
"What it allows us to do, it allows our community to have the care that they would receive at a more urbanized or suburban hospital," Felegi told KTVO.
Alerts Sign-up