Dr Hugh O’Sullivan,a telehealth doctor,starts his day with a walk before getting to work.David Lange
6am: I like to start my day with a walk around Melbourne’s Royal Botanic Gardens and along the Yarra River. I then grab a coffee in the cafe next to my home and use this time to reply to emails and plan the day ahead.
It’s something I would only have dreamed of in the past,as I have spent many years driving over an hour into various hospitals at 7am. I love the flexibility working remotely adds to my day.
9am:I usually have several telehealth consults with patients through our online health clinic. We treat everything from viral illnesses including COVID,UTIs[urinary tract infections],sexually transmitted infections and mental health issues like anxiety.
I like getting down to the unique issue each individual is facing. It’s amazing how quickly the primary healthcare landscape is changing. While telehealth is not too different from a face-to-face clinic,there are more doctors on roster almost around the clock,which means it’s possible to ensure urgent follow-ups happen quickly.
While patients are keen to manage their health from the comfort of their own home,I’m appreciative that I can mix up my work,too,between in-clinic hours and Telehealth consultations. I never thought I would be able to practise medicine with my two-year-old golden retriever at my feet!
Noon: I head to the gym and grab lunch before I spend the afternoon focusing on my role as a medical director at InstantScripts. A huge part of this role is managing more than 250 Australian doctors who work on our platform.
Today I spent some one-on-one time training a new doctor. We talked through the additional questions we ask a new patient to ensure we’re giving them the most likely diagnosis and ensuring their safety without a physical consultation.
My goals are to make sure they feel supported and to make sure they are maintaining the high clinical standards we set for our team.
1pm: Next is a meeting with our in-house tech development team,to suggest a change to our online platform. I love this part of the role,as changes that would normally take years to happen in a hospital system can often be created and deployed by our development on our website within an hour of an idea being discussed.
Part of my role is to communicate these platform changes with the doctors,so I spend some time deciding how best to share that. In developing these systems,we are all working together to see how we can make the online health platform as safe,affordable and convenient as possible.
3pm:I spend the last part of my afternoon checking through my patients’ investigations on the platform and following up with those needing ongoing care.
Some of these patients will need referrals to specialists following the blood tests that we order,which we can organise once they are back from the laboratory.
I also jump onto a call with the other doctors on roster to discuss any of today’s difficult cases. I often think how lucky we are to have such a welcoming,connected team,despite us being spread out across the country and working remotely.
6pm: An advantage of being a telehealth doctor is that when your shift is over,you are already at home! My evenings are spent making dinner with my partner and catching up with friends.
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