VECS Clinical Nurse Jane
When ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred hit the South East Queensland coast in March, Metro North Health’s Virtual Emergency Care Services (VECS) experienced up to a 120 per cent increase in calls.
VECS connects general practitioners (GPs) and their patients experiencing urgent but non-life-threatening conditions with specialist emergency medical advice by telephone or video call.
It was set up to assist GPs’ patient management within the community, and to minimise non-life-threatening presentations to emergency departments.
Thanks to quick thinking and willing staff, VECS was ready to tackle the incredible influx of calls to support Queenslanders as they weathered the strong winds and flooding of the cyclone.
Dr Kim Hansen, Medical Director of Metro North’s VECS, said the team did everything they could to ensure the community had access to healthcare advice during the severe weather event.
“Virtual care plays a crucial role in delivering expert care through online consultations, while providing peace of mind to the community,” Dr Hansen said.
“We doubled our staff during this period and increased opening hours from 14 hours a day to 24 hours with just three days’ notice to the team.
“We didn’t even ask them, the team immediately volunteered to operate around-the-clock to support Queenslanders during the cyclone.
“Like the rest of the community, most of our VECS clinicians worked from home doing longer shifts during the cyclone.
“Some even provided virtual emergency care while dealing with gale-force winds, rain, and power outages themselves.”
Jen, a clinical nurse at both VECS and the Princess Alexandra Hospital (PAH), is one of the dedicated staff who stepped up to help.
“The whole team, from nurses, doctors, and admin, went above and beyond during the crisis.
“Everyone took on extra hours. We reshuffled rosters and swapped shifts, and everyone adapted their personal and work lives to meet the demands.
“On a normal day, we receive anywhere from 90 to 120 calls. During TC and ex-TC Alfred, we received more than double that volume each day.”
Beaches closed during Cyclone Alfred.
Most GPs called from weather-impacted areas including Metro North Health, Metro South Health, followed by Gold Coast Health.
Dr Hansen said common conditions assessed by the team were skin conditions, abdominal pain, injuries, respiratory illnesses, infections, and paediatric presentations.
“Many were worried and just wanted that reassurance an emergency department visit wasn’t needed, particularly parents with young unwell children.
“This service empowers patients to seek urgent, professional help from their own home or GP clinic, and that can be such a weight of people’s shoulders even when we aren’t facing a cyclone.”
Now the worst is over, VECS is now back to the normal operating hours of 8am to 10pm.
Accessing VECS
VECS is a Queensland-wide service and is free for Medicare card holders.
Access the VECS's specialist emergency care services by telephone or video conferencing.
If you're not sure what health service you need, access the Health Direct Symptom checker.
In a serious medical emergency, you should always call Triple Zero (000).