Telemedicine

Abstract

Telemedicine is a rapidly expanding area within medical informatics. Defined as using computer and communication technologies to provide medical expertise and services to distant locations, telemedicine dates back to the 1920s. Then radio linked public health physicians standing watch at shore stations to ships at sea with medical emergencies. Much later in the '70s, the large scale demonstrations involving the ATS-6 satellite projects took place; wherein, paramedics in remote Alaskan and Canadian villages were linked with hospitals in distant towns or cities. However, certain obstacles are preventing the widespread use of clinical telemedicine. One obstacle is the inability to develop technical systems that do three things well. One, the components operate predictably and smoothly together. Two, the systems work in different settings without extensive adaptation. Three, the systems are built from easily replaceable components. Technical systems also may be poorly adapted to the human infrastructure of health care. The systems do not fit the work environment, needs and preferences of clinicians, patients, and other decision makers. Based on the author's personal experience, amongst the major obstacles preventing widespread use of telemedicine is management's concern for the security and the privacy of medical records sent over telecommunication networks. Thus, network security has become an area of active research and development. With secure and private exchange of medical information, there will be widespread acceptance of telemedicine in day-to-day practice.