New ‘Near Me’ Oncology service available for island patients

Oncology patients in the Western Isles can now attend consultant appointments with a family member or Macmillan Nurse sitting beside them, from the comfort of their local hospital or even their own home, thanks to the latest NHS Western Isles ‘Near Me’ video-conferencing service.

A collaborative programme from NHS Western Isles and NHS Highland, the ‘Near Me’ service uses the very popular and robust ‘Attend Anywhere’ video conferencing system, developed to provide health care as close as possible to patients’ homes.

NHSWI Medical Director, Dr Angus McKellar, said: “I am delighted that we are now able to provide the highly successful NHS ‘Near Me’ system to include patients who are using the oncology service.

“This means that, where clinically appropriate and acceptable to the person, patients who would otherwise have had to travel to Raigmore in Inverness can now access services from the Western Isles Hospital, with their MacMillan Nurse sitting beside them and with family members present if so desired.

“This service will be extended to the Uist & Barra Hospital, and will in due course be accessible to patients from the comfort of their own homes,” he continued, adding: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank the various team members who have made this possible.”

As well as allowing patients to attend consultation appointments from the comfort of their local hospital, the ‘Near Me’ system also allows for patients’ family members to join the appointment, regardless of where they are based geographically – a father could speak with his Raigmore-based consultant from Western Isles Hospital in Stornoway while his daughter attends the same appointment from her home in Glasgow for example.

The NHSWI ‘Near Me’ Oncology service follows the successful use of video-conferencing within the isles’ Haematology clinics, established in September last year.

Since then a total of 50 Haematology appointments have been undertaken via ‘Near Me’ – resulting in 94% Patient Satisfaction.

The NHS WI ‘Near Me’ Haematology clinics have avoided 12,100 travel miles and around 900 travel hours for Western Isles patients; and saved three and a half tonnes of carbon in the process.

The NHSWI ‘Near Me’ Oncology service will now be tested out for patient satisfaction and quality over the next few months to ensure that systems both here and in Raigmore are functioning as expected and that any teething problems are identified and sorted.

 “Our intention is, in collaboration with our oncology colleagues in Raigmore, to ensure that, where possible, these patients do not have to make unnecessary journeys,” said Dr McKellar.

“The Near Me service allows our patients to feel safer, surrounded by the people they want, and included in conversation throughout their treatment thanks to easy and dedicated access to their oncology consultant.”

He added: “The ‘Near Me services in Haematology and Oncology are part of a range of patient pathways which have been developed as part of the NHSWI initiative to bring healthcare closer to home. We have an active programme group which aims to continue to identify pathways were healthcare can be delivered in a more patient centred manner.”

The range of patient pathways which have been developed as part of the NHSWI initiative to bring healthcare closer to home include:

• Many patients with epilepsy now do not need to travel at all, receiving a VC consultation on island with a specialist nurse beside them.
• Patients with respiratory disease now link in with a consultant based in Dorset; the consultation taking place by video link.
• Patients needing hand surgery have their assessment and reviews completed on island with an extended role physio in the consultation room and a consultant present by video.
• Most patients with Parkinson’s Disease (though still needing to travel for the first consultation) receive all follow ups locally.
• Many patients with haematological conditions have been using VC consulting since September 2018 with excellent feedback.
• Some patients with dietetic conditions receive VC access to specialist nurses.
• Most patients attending the Golden Jubilee Hospital for orthopaedic conditions receive their pre and post op assessments locally and by video link.
• Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease now receive their infusions locally; previously having had a tiring day trip to Inverness.