Wales has announced plans to spend £825,000 on projects to harness new technology and local innovation to improve access to health and social care in rural areas.
A total of 13 local projects will receive a share of £525,000 from the Welsh Assembly Government.
A further £200,000 will be allocated to Hywel Dda and Powys health boards to pilot integrated models of care, and £100,000 will be spent on national coordination and evaluation of the projects.
Projects that have received funding include a tele-rehabilitation video conferencing system in north Wales and telemedicine links in mid-Wales.
An electronic link between the x-ray department in Llandrindod Hospital and larger district general hospitals is also being funded, to speed up diagnosis.
The projects were announced by health minister Edwina Hart and were recommended by Wales’ Rural Health Implementation Group following a commitment in the country’s Rural Health Plan.
Hart said she looked forward to receiving further recommendations from the group over the coming months on how to use the remaining funding.
She added: “The range of projects funded will help develop new ways of providing services, improving access to services for those living in rural areas. I expect that people will see a real difference as these projects is developed.”
Minister for rural affairs Elin Jones said providing integrated and accessible health and social care services in ways which reflected the particular conditions and characteristics of rural Wales was a key goal for the rural health plan.
She added: “The many innovative projects announced today will make a real difference to improving the accessibility of health services to rural Wales.”
The Welsh Assembly Government said the funding would also be used to extend use of telemedicine across rural Wales and to pilot a range of innovative services for community pharmacies.