2nd Edition

Introduction to Telemedicine, second edition

    In rural and sparsely populated countries, telemedicine can be a vital and life-saving link to health care, and in those regions where demands on hospitals are ever increasing, it can provide a safe and comfortable alternative to hospital-based therapy. The second edition of this introductory guide to telemedicine and telecare services is invaluable to new practitioners in this growing field of medicine. The book describes the benefits of telemedicine and highlights the potential problems. The authors provide numerous examples of how telemedicine is used in the United States, Australia, and Scandinavia.

    List of contributors
    Foreword to the first edition
    Preface to the first edition
    Preface to the second edition
    SECTION ONE: BACKGROUND
    1. Introduction to the practice of telemedicine
    2. Telemedicine systems and communication
    SECTION TWO: TELEMEDICINE APPLICATIONS
    3. Prerecorded telemedicine
    4. Realtime telemedicine
    5. Tele-education
    SECTION THREE: HOW TO BE SUCCESSFUL AT TELEMEDICINE
    6. Defining the needs of a telemedicine service
    7. Successfully developing a telemedicine system
    8. Evaluating telemedicine systems and services
    9. How to do a telemedicine consultation
    SECTION FOUR: OTHER ASPECTS OF TELEMEDICINE
    10. Benefits and drawbacks of telemedicine
    11. Legal and ethical aspects of telemedicine
    12. Sources of information on telemedicine
    13. Telemedicine in the future
    14. Conclusion
    Index

    Biography

    Richard Wootton
    Centre for Online Health, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia

    John Craig
    Department of Neurology, Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast

    Victor Patterson
    Department of Neurology, Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast; Centre for Online Health, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia

    The second edition of Introduction to Telemedicine provides an accessible insight into informatics and allows health care professionals to assess how telemedicine might be applied to their working practice ... The text has an international flavour, with numerous examples of how telemedicine is used in the United States, Australia and Scandinavia.
    Nursing Standard

    Now in its second edition, this revised text meets a growing need for a straightforward overview of telemedicine ... The authors are explicit about the health services dimension ... Indeed most useful for an audience of health care workers considering telemedicine ... It is pragmatic and even-handed, and the reader comes away with an appreciation of the realities of integrating telemedicine with routine care.
    The Medical Journal of Australia