Washington University http://wustl.edu maternal fetal medicine specialists located at Barnes-Jewish Hospital www.barnesjewish.org in St. Louis are using telemedicine technology to help patients at Memorial Hospital of Carbondale Illinois, a member of the Southern Illinois Healthcare (SIH) system www.sih.net.
To initiate the telemedicine program, Washington University maternal fetal medicine specialists applied for licenses to practice in Illinois and underwent credentialing at Memorial Hospital of Carbondale.
In addition, Memorial’s ultrasonographers received additional training in St. Louis to ensure they captured the detailed and multiple images required in diagnosing potential maternal or fetal complications. Contributors to the St. Louis Children’s Hospital Foundation funded the purchase of video equipment donated to Memorial Hospital of Carbondale.
As Ellyn Rosenblum, Manager of Physician Services and Telehealth at St. Louis Children’s Hospital www.stlouischildrens.org, said “This new telemedicine collaboration enables women to have their ultrasound done at Memorial Hospital of Carbondale, and then the images are transmitted to St. Louis through cloud-based image transfer technology. At that point, a Barnes-Jewish maternal fetal medicine specialist immediately receives the images and talks with patients using video conferencing.”
According to Katherine Goetzinger, MD a Maternal Fetal Medicine Physician, “Common referrals are related to maternal morbidities such as diabetes and hypertension and mild abnormal ultrasound findings that are markers for chromosome problems. Many times we can counsel moms and reassure them via the telemedicine program.”
Referring obstetricians receive an ultrasound report as well as a letter outlining all of the findings. In the event a patient needs to travel to St. Louis for further evaluation, an appointment can be arranged within 48 hours.