Paramedics across Ballarat are using Victoria's Virtual Emergency Department (VED) service up to five times a shift, connecting patients with non-urgent problems to emergency clinicians by video instead of taking them to hospital.
The numbers: Last financial year, 16,617 people throughout the Central Highlands and the Grampians used Victoria’s Virtual Emergency Department (VED) service, including 9,369 referred by healthcare professionals such as paramedics, aged care nurses and urgent care centre staff.
🩺 What is it? Launched in October 2020 as Northern Health’s initial Covid response, the VED was later expanded statewide with support from the State Government, including an initial commitment of $21 million in May 2022 and a further investment of $437 million in the 2025/26 budget.
The service provides urgent medical assessment through a video consultation, allowing patients with non-life-threatening conditions to speak with an emergency clinician without travelling to hospital.
It’s particularly relevant in Ballarat, where wait times in the Ballarat Base Hospital are almost double the statewide average.
🚑 First responders: For Ambulance Victoria crews, the VED is an option when they determine a patient does not require hospital treatment.
What they said: Victorian Ambulance Union secretary Danny Hill said some paramedics were using the service up to five times a shift.
🗣️ “When the crew get there, they find out it's just sunburn on their chest and that can be dealt with through virtual ED,” he told our sister publication the Eastern Melburnian. “You can take the pressure off the system and that allows the hospital to focus on those patients that need the care the most.”
VED clinical director Dr Loren Sher said “virtual care is growing and the importance of it is just making sure it’s addressing a specific need. It takes pressure off our emergency departments, which we know are under strain”.
🔎 The studies: Research from Ambulance Victoria, Monash University and the VED found 30,433 ambulance presentations were referred to the service between October 2021 and May 2023.
Almost three-quarters of those patients were not transported to hospital.
🧓 Elderly risks: The benefits can be particularly significant for older people in residential aged care, where hospital transfers can be disruptive and potentially risky.
A 2025 study of 260 aged care residents who had fallen and struck their head found 24.2 percent were transferred to hospital after a VED assessment.
⏭️ What’s next? Doctor Sher said the service supports about 1,000 patients per day across the state, with plans to reach 1,500 by the end of June 2027.