PrintPrintReach is a Web-based telemedicine service used for remote evaluation and diagnosis of stroke. Reach is currently available at Fairfield Memorial Hospital, with plans to be extended to other South Carolina hospitals.
Staff Report
Published July 23, 2012
Palmetto Health has introduced Reach, a new stroke-care resource for the community.
The Web-based telemedicine service is used for remote evaluation and diagnosis of stroke. Using Reach, the consulting physician at the “hub” hospital is able to communicate with patients and their families and clinical staff at the “spoke” hospital.
For example, physicians at another hospital can use Reach to call a neurologist at Palmetto Health for a consult on a suspected stroke patient. The Reach computer and camera is then rolled to the bedside for examination via high-resolution video conferencing. Patients who need intervention treatment will be transferred to Palmetto Health Richland.
“The Web-based telemedicine solution provides hospitals with specialists they would otherwise not have access to,” said Dr. Souvik Sen, medical director of the Palmetto Health Stroke Center and chair of the department of neurology at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine. “Allowing for consult and diagnosis in a timely fashion makes all the difference in the world to the outcome of a stroke victim.”
Hub hospitals can support more than one spoke hospital, and through Palmetto Health’s partnership with the USC School of Medicine neurologists, Reach will be extended to other South Carolina hospitals. As of this month, Reach will be available at Fairfield Memorial Hospital, allowing the residents of Winnsboro to have access to board-certified neurologists to assist in the treatment of stroke.
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