HealthManagement, Volume 12, Issue 5/2010
A pilot project has been made between Copenhagen University Hospital and Bornholm Hospital, which is a small hospital on the Danish island, Bornholm, located in the Baltic Sea.
The purpose of this health technology assessment was to test outpatient follow-up of patients using telemedicine for the first time in Denmark. This was applied in the categories of patients that do not require physical examination and for which telemedicine enables outpatient follow-up to be carried out in their community.
The pilot project focused on two selected groups of patients who live in Bornholm:
- Patients referred for surgery for knee and hip prostheses at Copenhagen University Hospital in need of preliminary investigation or subsequent follow-up, and
- Patients in Bornholm referred for echocardiography by their general practitioners.
The use of telemedicine in connection with echocardiography and preliminary investigations and follow-up for patients getting knee and hip prostheses was successful overall. The patients experienced improvements in both convenience and time saved since they did not have to travel to Copenhagen University Hospital. Similarly, economic costs are reduced considerably by reducing the number of patient trips. This reduction means that the use of telemedicine has produced an overall economic benefit in the six months during which the number of telemedicine consultations was registered in connection with this pilot project.
Further information about the pilot project contact Asger Hansen, [email protected]
