Deep in East Gippsland, Victoria, Australia, lies the quaint town of Dargo with a population of 100. Like many small and remote towns all over the world, Dargo can feel isolated, almost like an island cut off from the rest of the world. As a result, what might be considered normal everyday activities for others, such as visiting a doctor when you’re sick, becomes a luxury when you live four and a half hours away from the nearest hospital.

For city dwellers, a trip to the doctor’s office is a matter of minutes. However, for residents of remote towns, this journey takes hours instead of minutes. Often, seeing a doctor requires an overnight stay, as is the case for the folks in Dargo. This imposes not only a monetary cost but also consumes precious time for families who must arrange and budget for such trips. These remote town residents aren’t individuals who spend their days behind a computer screen; they are often owners of family farms who can’t simply take a vacation day whenever they please. They must find someone within their small community to look after their livestock or crops while they are away.

The initial step taken by the Dargo Bush Nursing Centre (DBNC) was to address the slow internet speed that plagues remote locations. To tackle this issue, they installed a satellite dish that significantly boosted their bandwidth from a mere 3 megabits per second to an impressive 290 megabits per second.

With the internet challenge resolved, DBNC was prepared to leverage mixed reality to overcome their geographical barriers. An eight-week pilot of telemedicine technology, using Velrada’s Mixed Reality as a Service (MRaaS), was initiated. Nurses were equipped with Microsoft’s Mixed Reality HoloLens headset and Dynamics 365 Remote Assist application, enabling them to virtually connect with doctors and share their field of view. One nurse enthused that this advancement in telemedicine, through the use of the HoloLens device, was truly transformative for their telehealth efforts.

A standout success story from this new approach was that of the Theodorou family. Following their daughter’s tonsillectomy, a follow-up appointment was necessary to ensure her recovery was proceeding as planned. Instead of enduring a grueling four and a half-hour drive each way, they opted for a virtual follow-up, sparing them “at least $800 to $1,000 once we consider fuel and accommodation costs,” not to mention the invaluable time they saved on their farm.

The resounding success of the pilot has accelerated plans for other remote centers to adopt this telemedicine model. The expansion process should be relatively swift: once a satellite dish is installed and nurses are trained in HoloLens technology, they should be poised for launch.

Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of this project is that individuals living in remote locales need not contemplate relocating closer to a hospital to access the same level of treatment and care available to urban communities.