Telemedicine Print
Today healthcare is mopping up more and more money of the state, its citizens, and healthcare institutions. Thus it is no wonder that there have been many attempts to redeem this problem, by managing to pursue quality healthcare activities while minimizing costs. Due to the level of technological and professional development healthcare has reached a phase where the technological leap is unavoidable.
 
While health costs are rising all around the world, the costs of Information Technologies and telecommunication keep decreasing. Hence the interlacing of healthcare with IT was almost inevitable, one of the results of which is Telemedicine.
 
Telemedicine is an application of telecommunications and information technologies in order to develop healthcare services, when significant distances must be bridged between participants. This may involve doctor-patient, as well as doctor-doctor relations and interactions. Telemedicine applications are built on two basic technologies, that is “store and forward” image transmission and live audiovisual communication, or the combination of them.
 
With the support of Telemedicine systems doctors do not necessarily have to be by the side of their patients in order to establish a diagnosis or for medication. X-ray, ultrasound, ECG, CT, MR images or any other information can be sent, while doctors sitting by the side of their patients can get help from any specialist via the Internet within seconds. It just does not matter if the doctor is tens of thousands kilometers away from their patient, they can still observe the patient's respiration, atypical fractures, etc. The implementation of these systems facilitates the development of a well defined follow-up-, and administrative system.