Advancing Regional and Remote Health Care With Virtual Hospital Implementation

A rapid review was conducted in accordance with the World Health Organization guidelines. A systematic search was performed across PubMed, MEDLINE, CINAHL, and the La Trobe University Library for peer-reviewed articles published between January 2015 and March 2023. Additional gray literature was identified through Google searches and snowballing from relevant web articles. Studies were included if they focused on regional or remote populations and addressed VHs or virtual care. Studies that solely discussed hybrid models of care were excluded. Data were systematically extracted using a customized Microsoft Excel template. A mixed methods thematic analysis was conducted to identify recurring themes, barriers, facilitators, and recommendations related to VH implementation as well as patterns in clinical outcomes and stakeholder perspectives.