Economic evaluation of expansion of Emergency telehealth services into AMS in WA

Start Date

18 December 2023

End Date

7 October 2026

Project Participants

University of Sydney, WA Country Health Services (WACHS)

Status: Completed

Tags: Aboriginal Medical Services (AMS), community health, culturally informed care, emergency care, health economics, healthcare access, Indigenous health, primary care, regional rural remote health, telehealth, virtual care, workforce

Opportunity 

Remote communities in Western Australia face significant challenges accessing specialist emergency care while remaining connected to family and community. To address this, the Western Australia Country Health Service (WACHS) established a virtual clinical hub in 2018 which has provided more than 250,000 video consultations to more than 90 sites state-wide [1] .  

The importance of delivering care closer to home and on country is recognised by Aboriginal Medical Services (AMS). A pilot providing emergency telehealth services (ETS) from the virtual clinical hub successfully supported a remote Aboriginal community of approximately 700-800 residents with the community continuing to access these services for over three years. With the support of Aboriginal Medical Services, a number of communities are also seeking access to ETS, so it is important for WACHS to have evidence on the costs, benefits, sustainability and cultural appropriateness of expansion of ETS across Aboriginal Medical Services. 

This project was established to understand the economic costs and service access benefits and provide evidence to guide embedding of ETS into additional rural and remote communities.  

Project Objectives  

The overarching objective of this project was to conduct a cost-consequence analysis of the implementation of WACHS ETS into remote Western Australian communities in collaboration with AMS.  

To meet this objective, the project aimed to: 

  • Assess the infrastructure, resourcing, workflows, equipment and facilities required to deliver WACHS ETS services at existing sites 
  • Explore the experiences of health professionals, patients, carers, and communities using ETS 
  • Identify facilitators, barriers and implementation challenges for expanding WACHS ETS into additional AMS 
  • Develop practical decision support tools to assist with future expansion planning based on localised clinical data and the needs and preferences of individual communities. 

[1] WA Country Health Service. Emergency Telehealth Service. Updated 16 April 2024. Accessed 4 November 2026. https://www.wacountry.health.wa.gov.au/Our-patients/Telehealth/Emergency-Telehealth-Service

The project successfully delivered a comprehensive costing analysis of WACHS ETS at two existing sites along with a qualitative evaluation with remote clinicians and Aboriginal community members. These provided the basis for recommendations regarding workforce, governance, infrastructure, funding models and cultural considerations for service expansion, and supported the development of practical tools to guide future expansion planning. 

The project demonstrated that telehealth can strengthen emergency care capability in remote locations by providing access to specialist clinical expertise while supporting care closer to home and Country. The evaluation identified benefits including improved clinician confidence, enhanced access to specialist advice and support for culturally-appropriate care, while deepening community engagement and strengthening multi-site Aboriginal research governance. The project has also provided practical resources to inform future service planning which are now being used by WACHS to guide planning on expanding Emergency Telehealth Services across more AMS through locally-informed planning and engagement with Aboriginal health stakeholders. 

The findings have national relevance for virtual care, rural health service planning and Aboriginal health service delivery, supporting discussions with national stakeholders on sustainable future funding models.

Integrity, Excellence,
Teamwork and Authenticity

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