None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
The purpose of this study is to explore the clinical impart of providing telehealth for palliative care patients in rural and metropolitan Victoria. Who is it for? You may be eligible for this study if you are an adult with a diagnosis of a life-limiting illness. Study details If you participate in this research you will be randomly allocated either to the telehealth consultation group or the "usual" care group in which we will simply ask you to complete questionnaires which will greatly assist us to assess and compare telehealth to usual care. The random choice is done using a dedicated computer program to ensure it is completely random. If you are in the telehealth group then your GP/palliative care community nurse will make an appointment with the specialist palliative care doctor based at the Monash Medical Centre in Clayton for a video conference. Our team will provide all the equipment needed for this to take place in your home. Before you begin, the specialists will already have your information, from your GP and nurse. It is hoped that this research will provide the basis for more extensive research. The system used for the video conference is a special dedicated system is completely confidential and nothing from the consultation is stored
Interventions
Telehealth: using a secure medical consultation dedicated teleconference system to enable in home consultation between a physician and patient in their home and addresses any issues raised by the general practitioner referral. A 45-minute specialist palliative care physician consultation via videoconference with nurse facilitation as would occur in any joint physician and nursing visit. A research assistant shall assist in the equipment setup and also helps in collecting data monthly. No tr
Telehealth: using a secure medical consultation dedicated teleconference system to enable in home consultation between a physician and patient in their home and addresses any issues raised by the general practitioner referral. A 45-minute specialist palliative care physician consultation via videoconference with nurse facilitation as would occur in any joint physician and nursing visit. A research assistant shall assist in the equipment setup and also helps in collecting data monthly. No training required for participants. Initial consultations occur 2 weeks post randomisation and then as required without limitation for 3 months and consultations lasting as long as required.
Sponsors
Monash Health
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Treatment
Masking
Open (masking not used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
Patients admitted to an associated community palliative care service, a Monash Health inpatient palliative care unit, be engaged with a Monash Health palliative care consult service or the Monash Health Oncology Supportive Care Outpatient Clinic. Diagnosis of a life-limiting illness. 18 years or above Able to complete informed consent Able to complete study questionnaires
Exclusion criteria
Living in an area with inadequate internet connection to perform telehealth
Outcome results
None listed