Electronic stethoscope lets doctors listen to patients' hearts remotely

Waikato Hospital anaesthetist James Clark listens to patient Sheryl's chest via electronic stethoscope. Photo/Supplied

You no longer have to be in the same room as your doctor to have them listen to your heart.

Waikato District Health Board is trialling the use of an electronic stethoscope - a New Zealand first.

The introduction of the electronic stethoscope allows clinicians to listen to a patient's chest and heart sounds from a remote location.

Clinical director of virtual health care Dr Ruth Large said the electronic stethoscope used existing Telehealth technology to hook up with patients in remote areas.

Telehealth provided safe and secure video conferencing between patients and specialists, she said.

"This is especially useful for patients requiring an outpatient consult with an anaesthetist," Large said.

"Pre-anaesthetic checks are mostly about discussion and consent with the patient, but the anaesthetist also needs to check for heart murmurs.

"Using the electronic stethoscope means these checks can be done remotely, saving travel time for the anaesthetist and the patient."

Initial trials had been positive and Large was hoping to have permanent clinics set up with the new technology by the end of the year.