Technology impacts our lives in so many ways, and in no way is that more evident than in the world of health care. Telemedicine is a continually growing field in which electronic communication and software are used in the treatment of medical issues. Telemedicine in 2018 is definitely going to demonstrate how health care professionals and their patients can further use technology to improve medical care.

Telemedicine is currently being used in many different capacities, including communication between doctors and patients for follow-up visits and medication management, consultations with specialists, and other coordination of care efforts that can be done through email, live-chats, or video conversations. There are countless benefits to telemedicine for patients – everything from no travel expenses to visit a doctor’s office and less time away from work, to limiting exposure to other contagious patients. Read on for information on how telemedicine in 2018 is changing the health care world.

Changes in how patients are interacting with health care professionals

Originally, telemedicine was primarily used for patients living in rural areas to get additional medical attention. However, more and more patients are using telemedicine to help them get the medical care they need without disrupting their busy lives. Even if you live in an urban area, you can skip traveling to a doctor’s office or hospital and bypass the time you spend in a waiting room. With telemedicine, there are easier and more convenient ways to communicate with your doctor.

Patients living in rural areas can get proper care

In the past, individuals residing in rural areas far from doctor’s offices or hospitals faced limited treatment options. With telemedicine in 2018, patients can get consultations and diagnoses from the comfort of their homes. They have increased treatment options because they can get treated by specific specialists who would not otherwise be accessible to them. Plus, they can get proper aftercare and help with disease management by communicating remotely with health care professionals. Patients who don’t have access to a medical professional can still get services they need (like obtaining a handicap parking permit through a telemedicine website like Dr. Handicap).

The advancement of telemedicine in 2018 will provide benefits to patients and health care professionals alike.

Increased access to specialists and coordination of care

Individuals who don’t have immediate access to specialists can find the perfect doctor to treat them by using telemedicine options. Whether they need assistance treating a rare condition or are located far away from a specialist they need, telemedicine can assist in helping them get the proper care. Telemedicine can also help their whole team of doctors to coordinate their care (including determining what tests they might need or which medications they should try) with online communication. This increased communication between doctors can greatly help improve treatment.

Assist patients in better health care management

It can be challenging for people to manage their health. If they have any chronic conditions or are trying to obtain a healthy lifestyle, it can be difficult to take on these things by themselves. However, with telemedicine in 2018, doctors can help set up a plan to reach their goals if they don’t have the ability to make frequent office visits. Communicating with their doctor through telemedicine can help with everything from losing weight and quitting smoking to monitoring blood pressure and keeping track of symptoms. Sharing information with their doctor through email can help them track their progress and get instant advice if they have questions.

Additionally, there is another aspect of telemedicine that can help an individual improve their health. There are mobile technology options (like apps or software) that can assist patients in monitoring their vitals or logging exercise, as well as helping them remember to refill prescriptions or keep track of any upcoming appointments. These telemedicine options offer more control and increased options for better management of their health.

Help with rehabilitation

Patients can often find it difficult to recover if they require rehabilitation. If patients live far away from medical facilities, they can feel like they’re facing the rehabilitation process alone. However, with telemedicine, patients can follow up with their doctors or therapists remotely, while still receiving the treatment they need. Telemedicine can also assist in providing patients with online support groups, advice from other health care professionals, and help monitoring their progress.

Patient data is instantly and easily available when using telemedicine, improving processes for all involved.

Provide nurses with assistance

Telemedicine also provides the health care community with added benefits. This type of technology can help nurses or doctors monitor patients while they’re attending to other individuals. Patient data is instantly available (like doctor’s notes, lab results, etc.), and they have the option of using cameras to assess patients even if they’re not in the same room. This literally helps the medical professionals be in two places at once! Telemedicine in 2018 will also help with a shortage of staff. Specialists can treat more patients, since they can be seen and communicated with remotely.

Reduced health care costs

Another major benefit of telemedicine is a reduction in health care costs (for everyone – including patients, doctors, employers, and insurance companies). Patients can avoid costly check-ups or diagnosis of simple health conditions, because doctors can diagnose and offer treatment recommendations remotely. Employers don’t have to worry about their workers taking time off to drive to a doctor’s appointment. Plus, hospitals can release patients who can go home because they can monitor their progress remotely. Studies have shown that telemedicine technologies can save costs with lower admissions to the hospital, shorter stays in the hospital, and help in improving chronic conditions.

Telemedicine is definitely the future of health care. With all of these benefits, it’s no wonder this is such a growing field. Consider inquiring with your doctor or insurance company about how using telemedicine in 2018 can help make your life easier.

Telemedicine has played a major role in the care of our astronauts at the International Space Station (ISS) since 2001, but the first pioneering telemedicine initiatives relating to space travel actually occurred in the 60s and 70s with the Mercury missions. The technology existed even back then to communicate an astronaut’s medical status, X-rays, and ECGs to a crew of professionals at the home base, ensuring that their health could be checked and monitored remotely.

2001 saw the first lengthy stay on the ISS and, since then, a new team of astronauts and cosmonauts has been dispatched to the Station four times a year. The duration of their stay can be anything from six months to a year, during which time they are required to perform engineering tasks, maintenance and upgrades, and so on. Access to medical care would be important for any group of people not within easy reach of physicians and specialists, but with astronauts in space, it’s even more vital that they are monitored regularly. The weightlessness that a lack of gravity causes can have demobilizing effects on the astronauts’ bodies – affecting in particular their immune system, fluid distribution, and the condition of their bones and muscles. The advancement of telemedicine technology means that the crew can be monitored and cared for throughout their stay. To help maximize the resources, a degree of training for medical emergencies and simple procedures is undergone by one or more of the astronauts during their pre-launch instruction period.

Advances in telemedicine mean that astronauts hundreds of miles into space can receive medical monitoring and treatment.

One thing that the Mission Control staff have learned over the years is that good communication is crucial during situations involving telemedicine. All professionals involved in ISS expeditions – medical personnel, the astronauts, and Mission Control staff – undergo training in order to acquire excellent communication skills. In an emergency situation, the astronaut needs to convey clear and precise information on what is taking place, and the medical professional needs to be able to give definitive and speedy instructions on how to proceed.

There’s a story relating to an astronaut who had a history of a knee injury prior to his launch to the ISS. He’d been symptom-free throughout the training period before the launch, but, during his time at the station, his knee started to present with some problems. Spacecrafts are equipped with ultrasound imaging – a form of technology which is radiation-free, cost-effective, and reliable, and which requires less expertise from the operator than some other forms of technology. Perfect for use in space! An ultrasound NASA specialist on the ground guided the nominated crew member through the procedure of taking some X-rays of the offending knee. They were joined by a remotely located radiologist who was able to view the images and diagnose the problem. Treatment was prescribed and the astronaut went on to continue his stint in space without a further hitch. A perfect example of telemedicine working to its full potential.

It’s been proven that a lot of planning and training is required prior to any NASA launch and also, as previously mentioned, that good communication – along with the ability to learn essentials quickly – is vital in the use of telemedicine. This has had a positive impact on the potential for telemedicine’s role in care and treatment in other remote or extreme environments. And some of those remote and extreme environments exist on terra firma! It’s possible to be connected quickly and cheaply with health care providers without the need for travel. You save time and money – as does the health service, as they are able to treat more patients – and you’re in the hands of someone who not only has the necessary medical expertise but also appropriate communication skills. Just one more example of how you could benefit from telemedicine.

X-ray images can be taken on-board the International Space Station and transferred to Earth for examination.

Another clear result that has come from the NASA ventures is that shared knowledge and shared input work well in the diagnosing and treatment of conditions. Videoconferencing is used between an astronaut and a physician, either for a specific problem or for the general monitoring of health, and often a specialist will be called in to join the conference when further expertise is required. This communal meeting is beneficial to all concerned as it brings the top brains together simultaneously, thus saving time and money and giving the best odds for a positive outcome. It’s easy to see how this translates into everyday telemedicine, which can benefit us all.

A further vital point learned from NASA’s use of telemedicine is that a strong and secure communication link is essential. You wouldn’t want to lose connectivity in the middle of a consultation or the briefing of a minor procedure. The provision of better broadband facilities in rural areas is currently under discussion, thanks to a representation that has been made to the House Energy and Commerce Committee on behalf of a coalition of health care providers, schools, libraries, and health centers.

Ultrasound, as detailed above in the example of the astronaut’s knee problem, is currently still the most used and the most developed telemedicine procedure, but other “guidable” procedures – minor surgery being one of them – are in the process of being developed. Imagine how this will not only help people in remote areas, but will also reduce waiting times for minor operations anywhere in the States, thereby cutting down on time taken off work and the use of pain relief while waiting for the procedure. Health costs will be slashed and so too will insurance premiums. Ultimately, we will all be beneficiaries of the continued advancement and development of telemedicine, and NASA is playing an important role in showcasing exactly what can be achieved via telemedicine.

Over recent years, the service known as telemedicine has grown exponentially and it is now very much an accepted part of modern-day medicine. For some folk, it’s probably crept up on you and perhaps taken you by surprise; for others, telemedicine may have been part of your life for some time now. But what is the history of telemedicine?

Let’s look at the definition of telemedicine first up. Succinctly put, it’s the remote diagnosis and treatment of patients via telecommunication technology. So we know that telemedicine delivers healthcare services remotely via telecommunications. But what are these services exactly, and what is the purpose? They include assessments, consultations, scans, results, etc. and allow healthcare professionals to evaluate, diagnose, and treat patients without actually seeing them in person.

Telecommunication, also known as telecom, simply means the exchange of information by electronic means. These electronic means – or information transmitting technologies – include telephones, fiber optics, satellites, microwave communications, radio, TV, the internet, and telegraphs.

Quite a lot to digest and understand if you’re not familiar with telemedicine! So let’s now take a look at the full history of telemedicine that has led to these fascinating developments.

The history of telemedicine has encompassed many advancements in technology, communications and medicine.

In the early 1900s, a little invention known as the radio was gaining prominence in many different fields, ranging from the obvious one – entertainment – to the perhaps less self-evident one of national defense. In 1924, a Radio News magazine published a sketch showing a doctor speaking with a patient via a video call, under the headline “The Radio Doctor – Maybe!” An incredible vision from a journalist about future technology, which would take another 90 years to be realized!

The world’s first use of electronic transfer for medical purposes took place in Pennsylvania in the 1940s. Radiology images were sent 24 miles from one town to another via the telephone line. A Canadian doctor took this a step further in the 1950s, building what was known as a teleradiology system, which was used in and around Montreal.

With the advent of motion pictures and the advancement of film technology, it wasn’t long before people started talking about introducing video medicine. It came about in 1959, at the University of Nebraska, where a two-way television was set up so that information could be transmitted to medical students around the campus. A short five years later, they actually linked with a hospital and carried out video consultations.

As you might imagine, telemedicine was initially considered important mainly for rural communities without any direct access to local medics. But by the early 1960s, it was being used in urban communities also, and to great effect. In 1967, in a pioneering move, The University of Miami School of Medicine partnered with their local fire department and set up a system where they could transmit electrocardiographic rhythms via radio to the Jackson Memorial Hospital so that they were able to give and receive advice during rescue situations. This innovation paved the way for further research into the possibilities of telemedicine.

One lot of professionals who were surprisingly able to benefit from these advances in telemedicine were astronauts! Yep – the technology even reached outer space as far back as the 60s/70s! X-rays, ECGs, and other medical information could be transmitted to a hospital for analysis, meaning the astronauts had access to medical care while in orbit.

Projects like this spawned an even bigger interest in telemedicine, resulting in further research and development over the following decades.

These days, many medical services are just a phone call, message or teleconference away.

It’s interesting to note that the world and history of telemedicine encompasses a large spectrum. On the obvious, and least technological, end of this spectrum is the familiar telephone consultation between a patient and a medic. You could include here also the basic radio communication between emergency medical professionals and hospitals. At the far end of the spectrum, then, you have amazing things such as telesurgery, where a surgeon is able to guide robotic instruments in the performance of surgery at a remote site. Sounds pretty mind-blowing, doesn’t it? It’s still largely experimental at this stage, but surely not that far off becoming commonplace.

In between these two extremes of telemedicine, you have a bundle of other functions, such as video conferencing for diagnostic purposes and a whole array of data transmission possibilities between medical professionals and hospitals.

Two things propelling the ongoing research and advancement of telemedicine are concerns about access to health care and advice in remote locations, and the ever-increasing cost of medicine. Currently, many of our medical centers are looking at reduced revenues, coupled with exclusion from locally managed care networks, so they are very keen to explore the multi-faceted world of telemedicine to see how it might reduce their costs at the same time as advancing their services.

Telemedicine is becoming widely accepted by patients and professionals alike. Today, more than half of all U.S. hospitals have a telemedicine program, and research shows that most patients are happy to use it. Insurance companies, too, are coming on board with the concept. Over the last few years, more companies have started to offer telemedicine as an option on health plans, and people are beginning to use this service in their droves.

So although telemedicine appears to be a relatively new concept, it has actually been around for nearly 100 years now, albeit in a very basic form initially. There’s a way to go with it yet, as the potential is huge, but it’s obvious that telemedicine already has many uses, is here to stay, and could be the answer to many a problem.