As well as easing the burden on healthcare, the virtual hospital launched in Armidale last week, will create new jobs in healthcare.
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University of New England's vice chancellor, Brigid Heywood said UNE was standing up to do what it should do in a moment of crisis.
The virtual hospital keeps patients in their own homes, using intensive care monitoring via a band strapped to their wrist.
Data from the remote monitoring units is watched by doctors and nurses at the university's Tablelands Clinical School.
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Professor Heywood described it as a university standing up to do what it should do in a moment of crisis.
With several thousand students on campus, and another 2000 staff, Professor Heywood also said her university would likely be burned if there is a large outbreak of COVID-19 in the region.
"It seemed appropriate that we would stand up to make a contribution at a time of challenge," she said. "But it's also about universities being innovators and being leaders in their communities."
While it has been fast-tracked over the last two months to cope with the coronavirus pandemic, it's use would be a benefit to remote country communities where intenstive care is required in the future.
"(We're) standing up to say we're here for the region, and we will explore new technologies and new ways of working," Professor Heywood said.
"On this occasion it's new models of healthcare, not only for a crisis, a pandemic, but also models of healthcare, which will improve how we support remote, rural and regional communities going forward," she said.
And it also creates more options for jobs in rural healthcare.
The university runs a joint medical program, in partnership with the University of Newcastle, specialising in rural health care.
"This is opening up new possibilities for those who think they would like to work in rural healthcare," Professor Heywood said.
She said there will be a whole new series of jobs in data analysis, data logistics, healthcare logistics through virtual hospitals.
"There's also new opportunities for us, as a university, to do the thing we're designed to do, which is support the education and training of people coming into health and allied health professions.
"And that whole theatre - no pun intended - has just opened up and created new opportunities because of capabilities like this," she said.
