Female Veterans who live outside of Salt Lake City will now be able to take advantage of services provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs in Salt Lake City, thanks to new teleconferencing technology within the Medical Center’s Women’s Veteran Program.
“So, Marie, my name is Dr. Rose. I’m the gynecologist at the Salt Lake City VA and you are visiting us from Elko?” says Dr. Susan Rose as she demonstrates a long distance consultation with a female veteran in Elko, Nevada.
She's doing so via a program called tele-health in which doctor and patient can visit face-to-face on the web
Because the Salt Lake City VA is one of a limited number of VA Medical Center’s that specialize in women’s health, they see a lot of female vets who don’t live in the area.
“So, using this technology, we’re able to see women in their community-based clinics so they don’t have to drive here for at least initial visits and things that can be done via consultation," Rose says.
The medical center provides primary care for female vets, including prenatal, obstetric and gynecological care. Rose says this technology encourages women to access these services.
“I think women don’t see themselves as veterans and don’t necessarily know of all the benefits they’re entitled to," she says. "Women have been entitled to full VA benefits just like their male counterparts. Obstetric care has been available to them for several years.”
Rose says they’ll initially be connecting with clinics in Pocatello and Idaho Falls, Idaho, St. George, Price, and Roosevelt, Utah as well as Elko, Nevada, but plan to expand to other areas as well.