The Bush
Telegraph
Connecting remote clinicians doing point-of-care echo and heart ultrasound to expert Cardiologists and Cardiac Sonographers in remote Australia.
Specialist
Service
Cardiovascular Disease is still the leading cause of Death and Morbidity in Australia. This is even more true for Australians living in regional and remote areas. At Bush Telegraph, we have seen the expanding power and portability of echo technology, as well as the interest from rural clinicians who want to use this technology to benefit their patients, many of whom are unable to access formal echocardiograms easily or promptly.
The Bush Telegraph is designed to expand upon 2-3 day point-of-care echo courses to help provide ongoing mentoring and support to develop remote clinicians who can use echo as part of their clinical decision making.
What is the
Support Hub?
The Suppurt Hub is a platform that provides a safe, secure place for images to be stored on-line, in partnership with the ‘Heartlab’ web-reporting website, already used by many echo labs around Australia.
How it Works
Once remote clinicians post their images, they will:
- Receive an educational report aimed at the echo operator, within 7 working days, commenting on image acquisition, use of colour or spectral Doppler techniques and suggestions for improvement.
- Receive a limited clinical report, within 7 working days, commenting on the following aspects: Left ventricular systolic function, a gross ‘screening comment’ on imaged valve, and the presence or absence of pericardial effusions
- Have the ability to share their images via the platform with their existing referral centres, in the event the bedside study is required to inform urgent clinical decision making.
Though there is a reporting component, the Bush Telegraph is primarily aimed at providing ongoing education and mentorship to improve the technical skills of remotely based clinicians who want to use point-of-care echo for patients who otherwise do not have ready access to this essential tool.
Support
Hub Access
Professional Echocardiography support from Specialists.
10 Sessions
24 Hour Support
Real Time Response
Ongoing Membership
$000 per 10 sessions
About us
The Bush Telegraph is run by a team of Cardiologists and Senior Cardiac Sonographers passionate about supporting rural clinicians use the expanding potential of bedside point-of-care ultrasound to care for their patients and bridge the gap in outcomes between remote and urban Australians.
Our Specialist
Anthony Spencer
B.Sc, B. BusMan, DMU (Cardiac)
Cardiac Sonographer / Educator
Anthony is an experienced Cardiac Sonographer based in Perth who regularly visits regional Western Australia, and is a lead educator for Outreach Cardiac Skills.
Dr James Marangou
MBBS (hons), FRACP, FCSANZ
Cardiologist / Clinical Content Consultant / Educator
James is a world leader in Rheumatic Heart Disease, co-leading the 2023 World Heart Federation guidelines for RHD echocardiographic diagnosis and the Australian RHD guidelines and is the lead Cardiologist for the Kimberley region. He has previously worked throughout the Top End of the Northern Territory.
Alex Kaethner
BHlthSc, Grad Dip Card. Ultrasound, Grad Dip Management
Cardiac Sonographer / Educator
Alex is an experienced cardiac sonographer based in Darwin and lead educator for Outreach Cardiac Skills. Alex won the 2022 Australian Society for Ultrasound in Medicine (ASUM) ‘Australasian Humanitarian of the Year’ award.
Dr Angus Baumann
BMBS, B.Sc, FRACP, FCSANZ
Cardiologist/Educator
Angus is a Cardiologist based in Mparntwe/Alice Springs, where he lives with his young family. He complected a sub-specialty fellowship in Echocardiography and CT-coronary angiography at Monash Medical Centre, Melbourne in 2020, after training at the Royal Adelaide and the Royal Darwin Hospitals. He is passionate about rural and remote medicine and embracing new technology to improve outcomes for all patients. He is involved in clinical trials testing point-of-care echo techniques and approaches. He has a particular interest in the early detection and treatment of Rheumatic Heart Disease. He has academic affiliation with Flinders University and the Menzies School of Health Research.
Contact
Please contact us here with any questions you may have, or to register your interest in any of our upcoming Basic Echo Skills courses.
admin@outreachcardiac.com
0413 383 957 (Alex Kaethner)
Contact Us
admin@outreachcardiac.com
0413 383 957 (Alex Kaethner)
