Keeping the door open: virtual coverage of rural emergency departments—what works and what doesn’t

Authors: Brydon Blacklaws, John Pawlovich, Lauren Currie & Anurag Singh
Publication date: February 2025

A growing number of rural communities are facing the nightmare of emergency department (ED) closures and diversions, with the nearest hospital often 2–3 h away. In times like these, communities often look to the Real-Time Virtual Support program in British Columbia (BC) to see if their site would work well with a virtual physician covering the vacant shifts as their ‘most responsible physician’ overnight.

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