Improved emergency department ophthalmic diagnosis

The eyeConnect device, which was launched last week at Frankston Hospital in Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula, collects patient data, visual information and images of the eye, which are then combined with data collected from the eyePressure device, a disposable tonometer.The resultant standard package of eye diagnostic information is sent to the Eye and Ear Hospital’s ergency department and is reviewed by a specialist doctor who can then provide advice on where the patient should be treated.The syst was developed by local medical technology manufacturer Ingeneus in conjunction with the Eye and Ear Hospital and was supported by Victorian Government funding.The purpose was to connect patients presenting with eye injuries or conditions at ergency departments in outer metropolitan, rural and regional areas with specialist advice without having to travel to the Eye and Ear Hospital.Eye and Ear Hospital chief executive officer Mr Mark Petty said the syst would power ergency department clinicians who are not ophthalmic specialists to manage patients locally, with the assistance of a rote Eye and Ear specialist where required. We are very excited to announce this world-first initiative which will allow our doctors to provide immediate advice on whether the patient needs to be transferred to the Eye and Ear ergency department, or if they can be managed in their local area, he said. This will reduce pressure on centrally located services and prevent patients from travelling long distances unnecessarily. It was said that in 2014, 2,700 people travelled from the Mornington Peninsula to the Eye and Ear Hospital for urgent treatment.Dr Shyaman Menon, clinical director of ergency services for Mornington Peninsula healthcare provider Peninsula Health, said the eyeConnect device was a game-changer for clinicians in regional and rural communities. After looking into the statistics with the Eye and Ear, we found that we could have treated many of these patients if we had access to this new teledicine technology, Dr Menon stated. eyeConnect is a win-win for both patients and hospitals.