NPMC Launches New TeleNeurology Service, Further Localizing Access to Expert Care

Through the partnership, providers at NPMC can connect with an Access TeleCare board-certified neurologist via secure, high-resolution technology in minutes. Onsite nurses, healthcare providers, and other physicians have access to the highest level of teleNeurology consultation to respond quickly to patients experiencing a stroke. They can also treat patients with epilepsy, severe headaches, multiple sclerosis, and other neurological conditions.

“Technology connects people in unique and personal ways. This is true in the healthcare industry, as well,” says Lisa Wallace, Chief Nursing Officer at NPMC. “Today, there are more tools and opportunities to improve how we deliver healthcare to our communities. Telemedicine is one such technology that represents significant opportunity to better serve our patients.”

When a patient enters the hospital needing the immediate services of a neurologist, NPMC can connect remotely via a two-way camera and monitor for assessment and diagnosis of the entire spectrum of neurological conditions. Board-certified teleNeurologists provide immediate acute stroke consultative services, as well as management of other non-stroke emergencies. The non-emergent team provides routine neuroHospitalist consultative services and ensures appropriate follow up evaluations with continuity of care in the inpatient setting.

“Access TeleCare prides itself on working with forward-thinking hospitals to enhance the delivery of clinical excellence locally,” said Chris Gallagher, MD, CEO, Access TeleCare. “NPMC has a tradition of delivering high quality care, and we look forward to working with them to further this tradition.”

This new teleNeurology service from NPMC complements their existing emergency department virtual services. These include the ARSaves teleStroke and the teleSANE sexual assault service through the University of Arkansas Medical Sciences (UAMS), along with a telePsychiatry service with QLER.

From July to September 2023, nearly 200 patients at NPMC have benefited from teleNeurology, and the overall number of patient consults has increased month over month.

“Our mission at NPMC is making communities healthier, and partnering with national experts to provide advanced technological services helps us to fulfill that mission by increasing the availability of expert specialty care close to home and providing immediate care locally when seconds matter,” says Wallace.

Learn more about the Access TeleCare service.

About NPMC

National Park Medical Center (NPMC) has been providing quality healthcare for over 60 years, offering a wide range of inpatient and outpatient specialized services and 160+ hospital beds. Located in Hot Springs, Arkansas, with provider locations across the city, NPMC is a proud part of the Lifepoint Health family of hospitals.