A paediatric patient in Mandeville is being examined by a doctor who is in Montego Bay. Meanwhile, in upper St Andrew, a 76 year-old hypertensive man is receiving his monthly check-up at home. But his doctor is in an office somewhere downtown Kingston.

These cases, though fictitious, offer examples of telemedicine, which has emerged as the new paradigm in health service delivery in a world where people are demanding quicker, easier and better service from their health-care professionals.

“Essentially, what you are talking about is the use of information technology with the management of health information to create the conditions for access of the patient anytime, anywhere,” explained Dr Winston Davidson, head of the Telemedicine Research and Development Unit at the University of the West Indies.

Simply put, telemedicine is medicine offered at a distance, and entails the use of audio, video or computer technology to investigate, monitor and manage patients who are geographically separated from their caregivers. It also allows doctors to collaborate on patient care, participate in diagnostic procedures and keep abreast of current practices. It is now used around the world in the treatment of paediatric patients, persons living in remote communities and those requiring home-based care.

Dr Davidson has created a seven-step integrated telemedicine programme known as ‘The Caribbean Model’ which, when implemented, will allow patients to have immediate access to their doctor or medical records, using their telephone as a starting point.

From making the initial phone call, the patient would then be able to link with the doctor through his website.

“It is an integrated system utilising all technology platforms, from the telephone to streaming media. We have integrated it into one robust platform and we have built the electronic medical record system on this platform, so that when a person calls via telephone, they can text in their demographic information, they can go voice-over Internet protocol into the website of the doctor to either chat, view media clips or access their records,” he told JIS News.

Dr Davidson said the programme will be equipped with the capability for patients to send instant pictures to their doctors, which will be helpful in diagnosing a patient’s ailment. It will also have chat room and video-conference capabilities, which will allow the doctor to communicate with medical colleagues in his field.

He said the system was by no means restricted for use by doctors, as all health and allied personnel stand to benefit, including medical technologists, pharmacists, persons practising alternative medicine among others.

In explaining how the system will work, Dr Davidson said “the first step is doctor on call, where you will be able to access your doctor (or respective health professional) by just using the telephone. In so doing, you will need to have a ‘doctor-on-call calling card’, and we will have these available for groups of doctors”.

He said that part of the programme involves patients accessing their medical system electronically through the use of a pin number. “The doctor will manage that because he can manage his website accordingly, (but) the patient has to use a pin number and go through security clearance and then pay whatever the cost the doctor would choose to charge,” he noted.

The model was available for testing at the recent Caribbean Telemedicine Symposium and Exhibition that was held at the UWI. According to Dr Davidson, to date, the testing of the model has proven successful.

However, he said the actual implementation of the seven-step integrated Caribbean Model requires funding, as well as the availability of broadband bandwidth for the technology to effectively work. Funding to make the model and all its functions operational will cost an estimated US$1.5 million.