No adverse outcomes were identified. Ophthalmology is well suited to telemedicine for the diagnosis and management of acute conditions and postoperative assessment of patients in remote areas. It offers considerable potential benefits to patients, and enhances the skills of local practitioners. Ophthalmology is another specialty which lends itself well to televised con sultation, and acute problems in ophthal mology are an area where telemedicine may augment existing specialist services.
Many ocular conditions present acutely and require immediate specialist referral.
While the remote town of Mt Isa, in central Queensland, has a visiting specialist ophthalmology service, the clinics are too infrequent to be useful for acute problems. Our aim was to examine clinical outcome, the effect on Patient Transit Scheme use and expenditure, acceptability to both patients and doctors, the ophthalmologist's evaluation of the transmitted slit-lamp images, and any problems encountered with the system. For those requiring specialist ophthalmological opinion, a telemedicine consultation was arranged during normal working hours within 24 hours of presentation. After the consultation, the recommended treatment was initiated and local follow-up was arranged as necessary. Patients could be discharged, referred to the visiting ophthalmology clinic, or transferred to Townsville if necessary.