15 August, 2024
How a trans-Tasman partnership is transforming wound care for older people.
Driven by a mission to see every older person access the level of care they need, the iAgeHealth virtual clinical workforce service provides 24/7 access to experienced clinicians utilizing cutting-edge diagnostic devices. Employing virtual health technologies, this service works alongside teams caring for older Australians in regional, rural and remote communities. It offers older Australians the ability to connect to specialist clinical services enabling equitable access to quality health care services.
iAgeHealth clinicians provide virtual direction to onsite staff to use a range of integrated devices and diagnostic tools that are connected to the internet and provide immediate feedback into the platform. These include a wound assessment, documentation and management system, temperature, blood pressure, oxygen saturation and heart rate monitors. 
ARANZ Medical’s Silhouette is the wound and skin imaging, measuring and reporting solution used in the iAgeHealth platform. It provides precise 2D (area) and 3D (volume) measurement and healing trends. Silhouette is designed to improve workflow in clinical assessment, allowing a user to quickly image and accurately analyse a surface feature, with all measurements saved directly into a database designed specifically for this purpose.
iAgeHealth was developed over several years by McLean Care, in collaboration with Deakin University and a specialist Australian-based software development partner. Sue Thomson, the CEO of McLean Care explains why they wanted Silhouette as part of their initiative. “At every stage of our discovery, development and commercialization of iAgeHealth, we have sought partners and devices that are best of breed, that can easily integrate into both our platform and the broader sector and most importantly, deliver cutting edge diagnostic and treatment options for all clients in any setting. Wound treatment and management is critical to wellness for older people, and being able to use and offer the Silhouette wound camera to providers internationally has demonstrated just how different the approach the iAgeHealth service offers. There isn’t a comparable device on the market today that can support clients and clinicians in this way.”
The Silhouette technology enables clinicians to do so much more in much less time. Previous wound measurement processes were found to be laborious and time consuming and often times subjective. In contrast, the clinical team at iAgeHealth have found that Silhouette saves them time, completes records contemporaneously, ensures immediate access to images, wound data and allows for timely wound management plans to be created, based on accurate, objective information.
“I was truly excited when our general training included Silhouette for wound assessment and measurement, and so pleased that we had this amazing technology to assist thorough consultation.” Leigh Bryant, RN MCPN (Wound, Stoma, Continence).
Silhouette is an integral part of the wound assessment process in virtual consultations and has become part of routine practice for iAgeHealth clinicians. During a virtual consultation, upon identifying a wound, the onsite staff at the facility opens the Silhouette web application on their iAgeHealth computer and searches for the client’s file. On the computer screen Silhouette displays a QR code unique for the client. Photographing this code with the SilhouetteStar camera readies the camera for capturing information directly to that client’s record. 
The SilhouetteStar camera, operated by the onsite staff at the facility, features three laser lines that intersect to form an asterisk-like shape on the body. Once the lasers are aligned, a single button press captures the photo and automatically uploads it to the server where the image can be accessed by the remote iAgeHealth clinician. The iAgeHealth clinician can then draw an outline on the wound image and get the reported measurements, view graphs of wound progress, and use these detailed and accurate images to guide wound management.
Silhouette has had a significant impact on iAgeHealth clinicians processes and outcomes. They can be in a virtual consultation speaking with an organizations onsite staff and client while being able to review the concurrent high-quality images, as well as all the previous wound images taken across the continuum of care. Onsite staff can be helped with the assessment and guided on best practice wound management and techniques during the live virtual consultation. The positive benefit to the clients has proven to be more than just the improved care, they are also excited to be an active participant in their care and impressed to have immediate feedback on the size changes of their wound.
Leigh comments “I wish more health facilities would take up Silhouette in-house and virtually. The time saved would be well worth the spend on this technology. There are not enough nurses so let’s utilize their time wisely.” Leigh added “Couldn’t do without it now!!”
For more information about iAgeHealth and its services, please visit: https://iagehealth.com/
Click here to learn more about ARANZ Medical’s Silhouette solution
Download PDF version of ‘Partnership Transforming Wound Care for Older People’
