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Recommendation for an internationally agreed minimum data set for teleneurology

Nature Reviews Neurology volume 14, page 687 (2018)Cite this article

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In their recent Review1 article (Teleneurology and mobile technologies: the future of neurological care. Nat. Rev. Neurol. 14, 285–297; 2018), Dorsey and colleagues highlight how teleneurology could address neurologist workforce limitations in a global context of rising chronic neurological disorders. They argue that by leveraging mobile technologies, teleneurology can provide patients with access to neurologists. Teleneurology also extends local clinicians’ capacity, which is particularly relevant in low-to-middle-income countries, as has been demonstrated with telestroke.

We agree with the authors’ positioning of telestroke as a model for teleneurology, with a similar pattern of uptake and development possibilities. The complexity of making a stroke diagnosis often means that, by default, a teleneurology service is offered. In our experience of providing acute stroke consultations (>3000 consultations across 16 hospitals), approximately one in three calls is not a stroke, and only one in five calls is eligible for thrombolysis, despite presenting within 4.5 hours of symptom onset (Victorian Stroke Telemedicine programme2, unpublished observations). An interdisciplinary approach is needed whereby nurses, allied health professionals (such as neuropsychologists and physical therapists) and other medical specialists are involved in care, given the often complex range of comorbidity in these patients. Following the implementation of a teleneuropsychology service at Echuca Regional Health Hospital in Australia, eligible patients post-stroke were able to have a consultation with a clinical neuropsychologist3. This service had not been available at this rural hospital previously.

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References

  1. Dorsey, E. R. et al. Teleneurology and mobile technologies: the future of neurological care. Nat. Rev. Neurol. 14, 285–297 (2018).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Public Health & Health Services Research Group, Stroke Division, The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Heidelberg, Victoria, Australia

    Kathleen L. Bagot, Dominique A. Cadilhac & Christopher F. Bladin

  2. Translational Public Health and Evaluation Division, Stroke and Ageing Research, School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia

    Kathleen L. Bagot & Dominique A. Cadilhac

  3. Ambulance Victoria, Doncaster, Australia

    Christopher F. Bladin

Authors
  1. Kathleen L. Bagot
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  2. Dominique A. Cadilhac
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  3. Christopher F. Bladin
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Correspondence to Kathleen L. Bagot.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Bagot, K.L., Cadilhac, D.A. & Bladin, C.F. Recommendation for an internationally agreed minimum data set for teleneurology. Nat Rev Neurol 14, 687 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41582-018-0081-0

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