Scottish patients take to telemedicine

Thursday 23rd July 2009

A telemedicine trial, undertaken by Cisco, has proved a success after almost 100% of responses suggested the technology used was acceptable.

Cisco, NHS Scotland and the Scottish Centre for Telehealth joined forces to run the trial at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary back in early 2008. The trial tested the performance of Cisco's TelePresence and HealthPresence solutions in supporting medical staff's treatment of patients with non-life threatening illnesses.

HealthPresence provides a more efficient way for doctors to assess patients' symptoms using physiological data obtained through stethoscopes, blood pressure cuffs and thermometers. Over the five months, 105 patients were treated with 99% satisfied with the experience.

Clinical Director at the Scottish Centre for Telehealth said, "I Hadn't expected patients to like it as much as they did, especially the older ones who are less familiar with technology. I was really gratified by the enthusiasm they showed, and many volunteered ideas about how HealthPresence could improve medical care in the community."

Though the trial was an overall success, it did reveal some concerns regarding telemedicine. Patients felt that the solutions trialed should be used to enhance rather than replace current healthcare techniques, whilst doctors showed concern over the inability to perform hands-on examinations by video conference.

Regardless of this, Kaveh Safavi, vice president, Global Healthcare Practice, Cisco, Internet Business Solutions Group, said, "It's clear that there is a global demand for better access to health care resources that can provide patients with the best possible care. Simply making more doctors available is often not possible.

"Cisco HealthPresence is an example of our innovative approach to developing technologies that improve the quality of the health care experience, simplify health care communications, and connect patients with medical providers in a convenient and efficient manner."

Cisco

Feedback

Have YOUR say.

Name:
Email:
Location:

We welcome all feedback. However, we cannot publish anonymous comments, so please supply your name and location. Your details will not be displayed if you so request. To protect privacy we never publish email addresses.