The Australian Medical Association (AMA) has called for affordable and reliable high speed broadband in rural, regional, and remote Australia.
Broadband is becoming an increasingly important tool for rural doctors in Australia. With approximately 30 per cent of Australia’s population residing outside of major metropolitan areas, health care professionals and millions of Australians could potentially benefit from telemedicine - the remote diagnosis and treatment of patients via advanced telecommunications technology.
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"Many rural doctors told us of the problems they encounter with slow and unreliable internet access, not only for conducting day-to-day business, but also for caring for patients via eHealth and telemedicine," said AMA Vice President, Dr Tony Bartone.
Having a fast, stable internet connection is one issue, but insufficient bandwidth is another. With medical applications often being bandwidth-hungry, rural doctors need broadband plans offering unlimited data.
Broadband-enabled health can also bring significant savings to Australians and the Government through reduced health and service provision costs; including travel.
For patients, instead of having to travel to the nearest major city to see a specialist, video-conferencing can be an option and is growing in popularity where suitable internet access is available.
Statistics from the Department of Health regarding the uptake of telehealth between 1 July 2011 and 30 June 2016 show 475,545 processed claims for telehealth services; with nearly 400,000 of those claims occurring in inner regional and outer regional areas.
According to a case study (PDF) by Deloitte Access Economics, the health-related savings for a 75-year old Australian living in a remote area through having broadband access could be as much as $7,400 a year - and for the Government, $14,586.
“At a time when the health budget is under pressure, it makes sense to invest in infrastructure that will not only improve health care, but also save money,” Dr Bartone said.
“Government policies are essential in bringing internet access to under-served groups and regions across the country.”
Earlier this month, the AMA published a position statement on the issue urging the Government to consider a number of actions, which include establishing an innovation budget for development of local infrastructure solutions for high speed connectivity in rural and remote areas
In 2016, the Better Internet for Rural, Regional and Remote Australia (BIRRR) Regional Internet Access Survey revealed Australians in these areas were doing it tough with regard to internet access. Nearly 88% of those surveyed indicated the services they currently have do not meet their needs.
