virtualKIDS Service Evaluation (CHRIS)

A health services research project examining the impact, safety and cost-effectiveness of two nurse-led virtual paediatric care models: virtualKIDS Acute Review (vKAR) and virtualKIDS Urgent Care (VUC). As NSW's first paediatric-specific virtual healthcare service, virtualKIDS was designed to provide timely remote clinical advice, follow-up and support for children and young people across the state.

The challenge

Many children present to emergency departments or require follow-up after discharge for conditions that may be safely managed through timely virtual review, triage and family support.

Our approach

Quasi-experimental study evaluating two services. vKAR provides post-discharge telehealth follow-up for children with acute respiratory, viral, hydration and related conditions. VUC is a statewide nurse-led virtual urgent care model delivered in partnership with HealthDirect. Includes economic analysis to estimate healthcare and family cost savings.

Key goals

• Evaluate whether virtualKIDS reduces hospital service use, including re-presentation and length of stay.

• Assess the safety and appropriateness of virtual triage and follow-up care.

• Estimate cost-effectiveness and potential savings from the healthcare system perspective.

• Measure family-level benefits, including reduced travel time and travel costs.

• Generate evidence to guide future refinement and sustainability of virtual paediatric care.

Evaluation & impact

Primary outcomes for vKAR are hospital re-presentation within 48 hours and length of stay. For VUC, primary outcomes include ED presentations for relevant conditions and presentations that occur against VUC triage advice.