Telemedicine and Trauma Care
Advances in technology have made it possible for telemedicine to be used in multiple areas of medicine, including trauma care. Teleradiology and teleconsultation are becoming standard operating procedure for many rural facilities. Future uses of telemedicine include teleproctoring and telepresence surgery. The medicolegal and financial impact of telemedicine remains to be determined. The potential influence of telemedicine in the care of future trauma patients will likely be important and may alter patterns of referral, consultation, and treatment.
Advances in radio communication, electronics, and computer technology have greatly improved care of the trauma patient over the past several decades. In fact, it is unusual for prehospital providers not to communicate with medical personnel at the hospital base station long before a trauma or emergency patient arrives in the resuscitation suite. Such prehospital reports are usually the basis for activating the trauma team and making preparations for the care of the patient, not only in the emergency department, but also in the radiology department, the operating room, and the intensive care unit. Unfortunately, in remote locations, the usual modes of communication, such as very high frequency radio and cellular telephone, may be ineffective or unavailable. Satellite-based telephony, which is now available from companies such as Iridium (Tempe, Ariz) and Globalstar (San Jose, Calif), or satellite-based radio communication, such as the Inmarsat system (London, England), are potential solutions to this common problem. Additionally, recent proposals to use these same low-earth-orbit satellites for 64-kilobyte (kb) Internet access could facilitate data and telemetry transmission for patients in rural hospitals or faraway locations. These readily available, "off the shelf" solutions to the communications dilemmas of rural or isolated health care providers may be the most cost-effective method of correcting the deficiencies of the current system.
Advances in technology have made it possible for telemedicine to be used in multiple areas of medicine, including trauma care. Teleradiology and teleconsultation are becoming standard operating procedure for many rural facilities. Future uses of telemedicine include teleproctoring and telepresence surgery. The medicolegal and financial impact of telemedicine remains to be determined. The potential influence of telemedicine in the care of future trauma patients will likely be important and may alter patterns of referral, consultation, and treatment.
Advances in radio communication, electronics, and computer technology have greatly improved care of the trauma patient over the past several decades. In fact, it is unusual for prehospital providers not to communicate with medical personnel at the hospital base station long before a trauma or emergency patient arrives in the resuscitation suite. Such prehospital reports are usually the basis for activating the trauma team and making preparations for the care of the patient, not only in the emergency department, but also in the radiology department, the operating room, and the intensive care unit. Unfortunately, in remote locations, the usual modes of communication, such as very high frequency radio and cellular telephone, may be ineffective or unavailable. Satellite-based telephony, which is now available from companies such as Iridium (Tempe, Ariz) and Globalstar (San Jose, Calif), or satellite-based radio communication, such as the Inmarsat system (London, England), are potential solutions to this common problem. Additionally, recent proposals to use these same low-earth-orbit satellites for 64-kilobyte (kb) Internet access could facilitate data and telemetry transmission for patients in rural hospitals or faraway locations. These readily available, "off the shelf" solutions to the communications dilemmas of rural or isolated health care providers may be the most cost-effective method of correcting the deficiencies of the current system.