A virtual ED run in south-east Melbourne helped reduce presentations to physical EDs by almost three quarters, doctors have reported.

Over a five-month period, a virtual ED trialled by three major health services redirected more than 72% of patients away from hospitals.

Following a telehealth consult with an emergency doctor, patients instead received treatment from paramedics or through follow-up care with a GP, outpatient clinic or community-based service.

“This initial report on the service suggests it is a useful intervention, avoiding a majority of patients from attending ED and potentially reducing ED and hospital overcrowding,” the doctors wrote in Emergency Medicine Australasia.