We are thrilled to join a tremendous bedside team at MaineGeneral and to help the providers, staff, and most importantly, patients, in whatever manner needed.
Kevin Curtis, MD, MS, medical director of D-H Connected CareMaineGeneral Health, a comprehensive non-profit health system based in Augusta, announces a new partnership with Lebanon, New Hampshire-based Dartmouth-Hitchcock (D-H) Connected Care to provide acute care TeleNeurology services to patients at MaineGeneral Medical Center. In a crisis, D-H TeleNeurology brings a neurologist to the patient’s bedside within minutes, supporting the local clinical team with prompt assessment and treatment recommendations via telemedicine.
“We’re pleased with this partnership to be able to bring a range of telehealth services to patients with neurological issues in the ED and for inpatient care,” said Chuck Hays, president & CEO of MaineGeneral Health. “Not only will services be available for urgent cases but medical staff will be able to consult with Dartmouth-Hitchcock neurology specialists for inpatient needs such as seizures, TIA/stroke follow-up and cognitive neurology.”
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Emergency TeleNeurology provides board-certified neurologist consultation 24 hours per day, seven days per week, to hospital emergency rooms, Critical Care Units (CCU) and other inpatient locations for stroke and other neurologic emergencies, as well as for routine neurologic consultations.
At MaineGeneral, specialized telehealth carts quickly connect the bedside care team with the D-H TeleNeurology team, allowing the D-H team to directly assist with patient evaluation and treatment.
“The goal of Dartmouth-Hitchcock’s Center for Telehealth is to help deliver outstanding care to the northern New England region independent of patient location,” said Kevin Curtis, MD, MS, medical director of D-H Connected Care. “We are thrilled to join a tremendous bedside team at MaineGeneral and to help the providers, staff, and most importantly, patients, in whatever manner needed.”
In the case of stroke, studies have shown that early and effective treatment can save lives and prevent long-term disability. Now recognized as a standard of care by the American Heart Association, telemedicine consultation by a neurologist brings the expertise of a stroke center to the bedside of the patient, improving outcomes, shortening hospital stays, and lowering costs through more timely and accurate diagnosis.
The D-H TeleNeurology service can also help reduce patient transfers and keep patients closer to home and closer to their loved ones.
About Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health (D-HH), New Hampshire’s only academic health system and the state’s largest private employer, serves a population of 1.9 million across northern New England. D-HH provides access to more than 2,000 providers in almost every area of medicine, delivering care at its flagship hospital, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in Lebanon, NH. DHMC was named again in 2020 as the #1 hospital in New Hampshire by U.S. News & World Report, and recognized for high performance in 9 clinical specialties and procedures. Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health includes the Norris Cotton Cancer Center, one of only 51 NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the nation Children's Hospital at Dartmouth-Hitchcock, the state’s only children’s hospital; member hospitals in Lebanon, Keene, and New London, NH, and Windsor, VT, and Visiting Nurse and Hospice for Vermont and New Hampshire; and 24 Dartmouth-Hitchcock clinics that provide ambulatory services across New Hampshire and Vermont. The D-HH system trains nearly 400 residents and fellows annually, and performs world-class research, in partnership with the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth and the White River Junction VA Medical Center in White River Junction, VT.