Dartmouth Health says it needs to close telehealth services for emergency and intensive care
Summary
Dartmouth Health plans to stop its Tele-ICU and Tele-ED telehealth services that support emergency and intensive care in rural hospitals. This decision will affect several hospitals in Vermont and the surrounding region due to high costs without external funding.Key Facts
- Dartmouth Health will end its Tele-ICU (remote intensive care) and Tele-ED (remote emergency department) services.
- These services help rural hospitals by connecting local medical teams with Dartmouth specialists for critical and emergency care.
- The services reduce patient death rates, shorten ICU stays, and lower the need for patient transfers to bigger hospitals.
- Five Vermont hospitals, including Grace Cottage Hospital and Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, use these telehealth services.
- Dartmouth Health says the costs of these programs are too high to sustain without outside financial support.
- Tele-ICU and Tele-ED services also help reduce staffing costs and keep patients in local, less expensive hospitals.
- Grace Cottage Hospital called the Tele-ED service a valuable partnership for its emergency care.
- Dartmouth launched the Tele-ICU service line in 2019 to improve patient safety and reduce staff burnout.
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