On Thursday 27th June we had the pleasure of being present for the launch of the final Vision for Life Camera at the Hawkesbury Hospital, generously funded by the Grahame Mapp Family Foundation.
The Vision For Life Project was initiated by NETS and NSW Health with the support of Variety – the Children’s Charity to expand the pool of tele-medicine cameras already in place in Western AHS and HNE AHS (now Far West, Western NSW and HNE LHDs).
The project introduced an additional 98 devices across NSW in regional-base hospitals and hospitals in metropolitan Sydney. In total 250 devices are now available across the districts in emergency departments, special care nurseries, children’s wards and other critical care beds. These cameras have proven to be an enormous support and assist in the following ways:
- enabling the earlier stabilisation, intervention and retrieval of neonates, and paediatric patients using tele-medicine
- improving patient outcomes and experience via the delivery of remote specialist expertise providing greater access to expert clinical care
- reducing the cost of service delivery by minimising the number of retrieval and transfers
- contributing to the ongoing professional development of medical staff in NSW.
Already these new tele-medicine cameras have saved numerous kids’ lives and are a welcome addition to the hospitals. We are thrilled to be able to work with NETS and NSW Health and our generous supporters to enable this project to happen.
In the picture Dr Andrew Berry and Graeme Still from NETS presenting Grahame and Sue Mapp with the plaques of acknowledgement which will be placed by the camera in the Emergency Department, the Neo-natal ward and in the main reception of the Hawkesbury Hospital.
