ArticleBMC health services research2023
The Queensland Virtual Integrated Practice (VIP) partnership program pilot study: an Australian-first model of care to support rural general practice.
Article in BMC health services research, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Implementing the Virtual Integrated Practice (VIP) Program to Support Rural General Practice Viability in Australia.The Australian journal of rural health · 2026Article
- Virtual Nursing Pilot in the Inpatient Setting: Qualitative Evaluation.JMIR nursing · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThere is a critical lack of medical workforce internationally, and this is particularly notable in rural and remote Australia where strategies to address workforce shortages are urgently required. This pilot study aimed to implement and evaluate a Virtual Integrated Practice (VIP) Program in the Australian rural primary care setting.
methodsThe VIP model was developed using co-creation methodology and involves an urban GP joining a rural general practice team to provide ongoing care to patients remotely via secure telehealth. The pilot study was conducted in two western Queensland general practices, commencing in October 2021 with one rural practice and extending to an additional rural practice from November 2022. Evaluation included a retrospective review of service, billing and cost data, and an online survey for patients. Ethical approval was obtained from the University of Queensland Human Research Ethics Committee (Project number: 2021/HE002434).
resultsThere were 1468 services provided through to December 2022, including general consults (n = 1197), therapeutic procedures (n = 68), mental health treatment plans (n = 68) and chronic disease management plans (n = 59). Patients were predominantly female (73.1%) and did not have their appointment at the practice (57.8%). Among 1282 occasions of service, less than 20% of consultations (n = 224) required support from staff (e.g., a nurse), and more than half were repeat patient encounters (53.0%). Survey respondents (n = 45) indicated that they were satisfied (9.3%) or highly satisfied (90.7%) with the care provided, and importantly, 95.5% of respondents reported that the service improved their access to the GP. More than 20% of respondents indicated that they would attend the Emergency Department if virtual care was not available.
conclusionsData from this pilot study has informed translation to an additional 20 vulnerable rural general practices in three further rural regions in Queensland in 2023 and evaluation is ongoing. This pilot study demonstrates the feasibility and acceptability of an innovative, digitally supported community-focussed, healthcare initiative to arrest the decline in rural general practice workforce, improve patient care access and support rural practice viability.
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