P1.047. Therapeutic Endoscopy as Essential Regional Care: Outcomes From an Australian Centre

Abstract

Abstract Topic Benign Disease: Other Background Providing therapeutic endoscopy in regional centres offers substantial benefits by enabling minimally invasive gastrointestinal interventions closer to home. This reduces travel burden, improves timely access to specialist care, and decreases healthcare expenditure. With appropriate training and infrastructure, regional surgeons can safely deliver high-quality therapeutic endoscopy comparable to metropolitan services. Methods All consecutive therapeutic endoscopy procedures performed by a single provider were identified from the electronic medical record between July 2023 and January 2026. Fifty procedures were recorded. One patient underwent two procedures. Eleven colorectal procedures (ESD/EMR n=8; foreign body removal n=2; haemostasis n=1) were excluded, leaving 40 upper gastrointestinal therapeutic procedures for analysis. Results Among the 40 upper GI procedures, there were 6 EMRs (oesophagus n=2, GOJ n=3, stomach n=1), 5 palliative oesophageal SEMS insertions, 3 balloon dilatations (GOJ n=2, pylorus n=1), 7 multimodal haemostasis interventions, 10 foreign body removals (oesophagus n=8, stomach n=1, duodenum n=1), 8 PEG insertions, and 1 gastric polypectomy. The only complication was a delayed post-polypectomy bleed in a patient receiving bridging enoxaparin and warfarin. Travel between the regional and metropolitan centres cost AUD 500–600 via commercial flights, compared with AUD 10,000–20,000 for aeromedical retrieval. Conclusion Therapeutic endoscopy is a safe, effective, and essential service in regional healthcare. It reduces reliance on costly aeromedical transfers, enhances access to timely intervention, and delivers high-quality outcomes for patients in geographically underserved areas.