Ford called her opthamologist in Dover,
Delaware from the conference, then drove straight to his office. There,
he diagnosed the problem as a detached retina. In Salisbury, Maryland,
a retinal surgeon was on standby to perform emergency surgery.
“Saving a woman’s eyesight may be all in a day’s work in the telemedicine field,” said Dr. Earl Fox, head of the Health Research Services Administration. “But, it’s nothing short of a miracle for this woman and her family.”
Bringing
Medicine to the Patient
Patients like Ford, whose
lives or health have been saved via telemedicine, will attest to its
growing impact. In Hartford, Connecticut, The
Yale Telemedicine Center
works with both the Department of Defense (DOD) and the National Aeronautics
and Space Administration (NASA) to bring the latest medical advances
to the men and women who live and work around the world, and even in
space. Mountaineer Doctor Television in Morganstown, West Virginia is
bringing medical care to the most remote corners of that mountainous
state. The Health Center at Lousiana State University is sending “virtual”
physicians into prisons, mental health institutions, and onto the streets
to bring care to the homeless. And in Hawaii, the Pacific
e-Health Innovation Center at Tripler Army Medical Center is using
telemedicine to support more than 34 different medical applications
from tele-radiology to a diabetes outpatient treatment program to a
tele-proctored surgery project.
In short, telemedicine is all about bringing care to the patient instead
of forcing patients to find and travel to a healthcare provider. Why?
Consider these facts.
| More than 44 million Americans lack heath insurance. |
| A significant number of impoverished Americans lack geographic, as well as economic, access to health care. |
| Millions of Americans, including children,
rarely or never consult a health care provider, no matter how sick
they become or how desperately they need care. |
For
these Americans, an emerging network of telemedicine providers promises
something more than convenience. It promises help.
