Intermountain Healthcare sets up its first virtual hospital in Utah

Intermountain Healthcare, a nonprofit organization renowned for dealing with telemedicine for the past five years, has recently made it to the headlines for establishing Connect Care Pro, its first virtual hospital.

Jim Sheets, The Vice President of Outreach Services at Intermountain Healthcare reportedly stated that the establishment of Connect Care Pro is an initiative to consolidate the telemedicine services offered by Intermountain Healthcare which had been highly fragmented in the past, spanning 35 telemedicine programs across Utah. Medical teams of Connect Care Pro will provide tele health advice and programs to 21 Intermountain hospitals in Utah and Idaho, claim sources.

Sheets added that the hospital’s chief aim is to facilitate healthcare for all. No one should feel penalized just because they live in one of the remote and smaller cities of Utah and have no access to health specialists, he says. Through this program, patients can now access virtual care in critical cases like strokes, neonatal crisis, and tele crisis.

It is being speculated that the goal of launching this type of telemedicine is to keep people as close to their homes as possible and save time and money. According to the Salt Lake Tribune, Intermountain Healthcare officials said that avoiding transfer or travel to seek medical care can save up to $18,000. Apparently, in the three years for which Intermountain has been providing telemedicine services related to newborn critical care, patients have made estimated savings of $2.1 million.

Patients can approach Connect Care not only through their smartphones but also through kiosk that have been set up throughout the state. Tim Lovell, the Business Manager for Connect Care said that patients have been known to approach Connect Care under all sorts of circumstances. There is no additional cost for using Connect Care which is covered by Utah Medicaid.

Incidentally, Intermountain is also looking forward to expanding its services by setting up kiosks in schools, homeless shelters, and jails