Virtual urgent care expanded to support hospital emergency departments.
 

Eligible patients who present to the Emergency Department at Concord and Canterbury hospitals can now receive free virtual care following the expansion of the Virtual Urgent Care Service at Sydney Local Health District.  

The service is delivered by rpavirtual.  

Patients who present at Emergency with minor conditions and injuries, now have the option to be triaged to receive a virtual care video call with a Virtual Urgent Care Service senior doctor or nurse.  

The service provides specialist emergency advice and care via video call and connects patients with the right follow-up care for their condition.  

It will help reduce patient wait times in Emergency and reduce the length of stay for patients who need care and hospital admission.   

“Our Virtual Urgent Care Service is improving community access to timely care and supporting capacity in our hospital EDs,” said Miranda Shaw, RPA Virtual Hospital’s General Manager.  

Statistics from October to December in 2024 saw more than 23,000 Emergency Department attendances at Canterbury and Concord Hospitals combined.¹  

The Virtual Urgent Care Service was piloted in November 2023 at RPA’s Emergency Department, with 84 per cent of patients discharged back into the community, with no hospitalisations.  

Through evaluation, 89 per cent of surveyed patients rated their care as excellent or good, and 90 per cent would use virtual care again if given the choice.   

As at March 2025, the Virtual Urgent Care Service has managed 939 patients referred from RPA, Canterbury and Concord Emergency Departments.     

Dr Phil Visser, Director and Staff Specialist Emergency Department at Concord Hospital, welcomed the support.  

“The expansion of the virtual hub to Concord ED is an exciting opportunity for us to improve access to emergency care,” Dr Visser said.  

“Integrating a virtual care model for those who present with a condition suitable for this type of consultation care helps us to evolve, build new partnerships and offer greater diversity in taking care of our community,” he said.   

For more information, please visit the Virtual Urgent Care website.