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This summer, VSee had a new opportunity to demonstrate its telemedicine capabilities in extreme and remote environments. Our team flew into one of the most remote regions of the world – Kwajalein Atoll located in the Republic of the Marshall Islands – to provide telemedicine for US veterans from a boat ambulance!
To provide some context, Kwajalein Atoll is a collection of about 90 islets sitting atop a crescent-shaped coral reef. It forms one of the largest lagoons in the world. As a part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, it is located in the western Pacific Ocean about 2000 miles southwest of Hawaii. (It’s also an important US missile-testing site.)
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The Atoll faces unique healthcare challenges due to its remote location and limited medical resources. Approximately 10,000 people live on the main island of Ebeye, which is the only island that has any qualified healthcare professionals and the only one with a small hospital. Of the roughly 90 outer islands around the Atoll, perhaps a dozen are permanently inhabited, some of which have as few as twenty inhabitants, who do not have access to any trained healthcare personnel.
Kwajalein’s boat ambulance is available for medical emergencies, but it’s inconvenient and inefficient for general urgent care needs. What if there was a way to get a physical exam and see the doctor without having to leave your island? What if there was a way to access specialists without having to travel halfway around the world?
That’s where VSee Health, the Kwajalein Atoll Local Government (KALGOV) and Kwajalein Atoll Sustainability Laboratory (KASL) came together to launch a telehealth initiative that would improve healthcare access for Marshallese US military veterans and residents of Kwajalein Atoll. Leveraging Starlink satellite technology and VSee Health’s telemedicine solution, the three organizations brought together a group of remote physicians and specialists, two freshman American Coast Guard Academy cadets, and several Marshallese veterans to demonstrate how the feasibility of providing virtual doctor consultations aboard the Kwajalein boat ambulance.
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Over the course of several days, we worked with KALGOV and KASL to get ready. We had to get the Starlink satellite receiver mounted on the boat. This was done with the magic of duct tape. We also tested each scope and telemedicine device to make sure they were functioning correctly.
On the day of demonstration, we gave two Coast Guard cadets a training of less than 30 minutes on the VSee Telemedicine Kit. The telemedicine equipment included a laptop with plug-and-play digital medical devices including USB stethoscope, otoscope, ultrasound, and ECG monitoring for live-streaming medical device images and data to the remote physician.
After the training, the cadets were immediately able to conduct a remote physical exam and doctor consultation on a volunteer Marshallese US Army veteran, streaming his biometric data to a group of remote physicians on Ebeye and around the US. Because the VSee platform also allows for secure group calls or “Medical Apprentice” mode – where groups of physicians can observe and comment about a live physician-patient encounter. During the remote patient examination, physicians in Hawaii, Washington, and Florida also joined the call to observe.
KALGOV Mayor HIrata J. Kabua, Kwajalein Atoll, stated, “This telehealth initiative marks a significant step forward in our efforts to enhance healthcare services for our community,” said. “By leveraging advanced technology, we can ensure that our residents, especially our veterans, receive the medical attention they need, when they need it. We are excited about the positive impact this project will have on our healthcare system.”
KASL Executive Director Scott Paul remarked, “An old proverb says, ‘Drijo im Ukoj’ or ‘achieving our common goals through the collective efforts of everyone.’ The potential of this initiative to give our people access to better healthcare in the most remote locations within the atoll and the Pacific is a true testament to what can be accomplished with this collaborative initiative.”
Eric Rasmussen, MD, KASL Research Director commented, “I’ve worked in war zones and disaster sites all over the world, and this telemedicine capability from VSee is the most robust I’ve seen. It will save lives out here.”
“We are thrilled to partner with the Kwajalein Atoll Government to bring this advanced telehealth solution to the region,” said Milton Chen, CEO of VSee Health. “Our goal is to bridge the healthcare gap and provide US military veterans and residents with access to quality medical care, no matter where they are.”
Now that we’ve shown that telehealth can work on the boat ambulance, it’s opened up a whole realm of possibilities for the Atoll. In the future each island might have its own local telehealth clinic where they could first get a remote consult instead of unnecessarily having to go all the way out to Ebeye. They could even easily connect with doctors anywhere in the United States, and anywhere in the world!
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