Taking telehealth to the bush: lessons from north Queensland

Networking North Queensland (NNQ) was a two-year project to improve access to health services in rural and remote communities. The project involved em ail and Internet access in 61 communities, in a region almost three times t he size of the UK. Videoconferencing equipment was also installed at 21 sit es and a total of 197 h of videoconferencing was recorded at 10 of the remo te sites over 12 months. As a result of the project, health consumers enjoy ed improved access to medical, specialist, allied health and primary health services. In addition, health service providers had better access to relia ble, up-to-date health-care information via intranet and Internet services. Consideration of local issues-local needs and existing resources-was vital to the achievements of the project. Community involvement and community ac cess were also important factors in its success.