In comparison with almost universal adoption of telephony and mobile technologies in modern day healthcare, video conferencing has yet to become a ubiquitous clinical tool. Currently telehealth services are faced with...In comparison with almost universal adoption of telephony and mobile technologies in modern day healthcare, video conferencing has yet to become a ubiquitous clinical tool. Currently telehealth services are faced with a bewildering range of video conferencing software and hardware choices. This paper provides a case study in the selection of video conferencing services by the Flinders University Telehealth in the Home trial (FTH Trial) to support healthcare in the home. Using pragmatic methods, video conferencing solutions available on the market were assessed for usability, reliability, cost, compatibility, interoperability, performance and privacy considerations. The process of elimination through which the eventual solution was chosen, the selection criteria used for each requirement and the corresponding results are described. The resulting product set, although functional, had restricted ability to directly connect with systems used by healthcare providers elsewhere in the system. This outcome illustrates the impact on one small telehealth provider of the broader struggles between competing video conferencing vendors. At stake is the ability to communicate between healthcare organizations and provide public access to healthcare. Comparison of the current state of the video conferencing market place with the evolution of the telephony system reveals that video conferencing still has a long way to go before it can be considered as easy to use as the telephone. Health organizations that are concerned to improve access and quality of care should seek to influence greater standardization and interoperability though cooperation with one another, the private sector, international organizations and by encouraging governments to play a more active role in this sphere.展开更多
世界家庭医生组织（WONCA）是全球家庭医生的组织,有来自150多个国家的50多万名家庭医生。WONCA把全世界的家庭医生汇聚到一起,以尽可能高的标准支持家庭医学领域的教育、培训及研究。正如WONCA第一任主席Monty Kent Hughes讲到的：＂...世界家庭医生组织（WONCA）是全球家庭医生的组织,有来自150多个国家的50多万名家庭医生。WONCA把全世界的家庭医生汇聚到一起,以尽可能高的标准支持家庭医学领域的教育、培训及研究。正如WONCA第一任主席Monty Kent Hughes讲到的：＂我们家庭医学专业的未来将由我们为人类医疗服务的整体合作能力所决定＂,为此我们一直在努力、在合作。展开更多
Models of services, processes and technology are useful tools for conceptualizing complex systems such as healthcare. The application of a component architecture helps illustrate the processes and technologies that ar...Models of services, processes and technology are useful tools for conceptualizing complex systems such as healthcare. The application of a component architecture helps illustrate the processes and technologies that are important to the operation of a health service and conceptualize the relationships between each component. Telehealth services are relatively recent and have characteristics that do not fit neatly into established models of health services. This paper analyzes the components used to build a telehealth in the home service in South Australia and the design choices that were taken. The service used commodity-based devices and systems to deliver simple to use, low-cost in the home care. Building on this analysis, the components required in an architectural component model of a telehealth service are identified enabling a provisional architecture for telehealth services to be derived from an existing internationally recognized architectural model for eHealth systems. Situated within the broad family of eHealth architectures, a Telehealth Architectural Model of telehealth processes, software, devices, common systems and ICT infrastructure is proposed that represents the components required to support telehealth and allows for customization of services according to clinical models of care.展开更多
We report the learnings gleaned from a four-country panel(Australia,South Africa,Egypt and Nigeria)sharing their countries’COVID-19 primary healthcare approaches and implementation of policy at the World Organization...We report the learnings gleaned from a four-country panel(Australia,South Africa,Egypt and Nigeria)sharing their countries’COVID-19 primary healthcare approaches and implementation of policy at the World Organization of Family Doctor’s World virtual conference in November.The countries differ considerably with respect to size,national economies,average age,unemployment rates and proportion of people living rurally.South Africa has fared the worst with respect to waves of COVID-19 cases and deaths.All countries introduced strategies such as border closure,COVID-19 testing,physical distancing and face masks.Australia and Nigeria mobilised primary care,but the response was mostly public health and hospital-based in South Africa and Egypt.All countries rapidly adopted telehealth.All countries emphasised the critical importance of an integrated response between primary care and public health to conduct surveillance,diagnose cases through testing,provide community-based care unless hospitalisation is required and vaccinate the population to reduce infection spread.展开更多
文摘In comparison with almost universal adoption of telephony and mobile technologies in modern day healthcare, video conferencing has yet to become a ubiquitous clinical tool. Currently telehealth services are faced with a bewildering range of video conferencing software and hardware choices. This paper provides a case study in the selection of video conferencing services by the Flinders University Telehealth in the Home trial (FTH Trial) to support healthcare in the home. Using pragmatic methods, video conferencing solutions available on the market were assessed for usability, reliability, cost, compatibility, interoperability, performance and privacy considerations. The process of elimination through which the eventual solution was chosen, the selection criteria used for each requirement and the corresponding results are described. The resulting product set, although functional, had restricted ability to directly connect with systems used by healthcare providers elsewhere in the system. This outcome illustrates the impact on one small telehealth provider of the broader struggles between competing video conferencing vendors. At stake is the ability to communicate between healthcare organizations and provide public access to healthcare. Comparison of the current state of the video conferencing market place with the evolution of the telephony system reveals that video conferencing still has a long way to go before it can be considered as easy to use as the telephone. Health organizations that are concerned to improve access and quality of care should seek to influence greater standardization and interoperability though cooperation with one another, the private sector, international organizations and by encouraging governments to play a more active role in this sphere.
文摘世界家庭医生组织（WONCA）是全球家庭医生的组织,有来自150多个国家的50多万名家庭医生。WONCA把全世界的家庭医生汇聚到一起,以尽可能高的标准支持家庭医学领域的教育、培训及研究。正如WONCA第一任主席Monty Kent Hughes讲到的：＂我们家庭医学专业的未来将由我们为人类医疗服务的整体合作能力所决定＂,为此我们一直在努力、在合作。
文摘Models of services, processes and technology are useful tools for conceptualizing complex systems such as healthcare. The application of a component architecture helps illustrate the processes and technologies that are important to the operation of a health service and conceptualize the relationships between each component. Telehealth services are relatively recent and have characteristics that do not fit neatly into established models of health services. This paper analyzes the components used to build a telehealth in the home service in South Australia and the design choices that were taken. The service used commodity-based devices and systems to deliver simple to use, low-cost in the home care. Building on this analysis, the components required in an architectural component model of a telehealth service are identified enabling a provisional architecture for telehealth services to be derived from an existing internationally recognized architectural model for eHealth systems. Situated within the broad family of eHealth architectures, a Telehealth Architectural Model of telehealth processes, software, devices, common systems and ICT infrastructure is proposed that represents the components required to support telehealth and allows for customization of services according to clinical models of care.
基金The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public,commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
文摘We report the learnings gleaned from a four-country panel(Australia,South Africa,Egypt and Nigeria)sharing their countries’COVID-19 primary healthcare approaches and implementation of policy at the World Organization of Family Doctor’s World virtual conference in November.The countries differ considerably with respect to size,national economies,average age,unemployment rates and proportion of people living rurally.South Africa has fared the worst with respect to waves of COVID-19 cases and deaths.All countries introduced strategies such as border closure,COVID-19 testing,physical distancing and face masks.Australia and Nigeria mobilised primary care,but the response was mostly public health and hospital-based in South Africa and Egypt.All countries rapidly adopted telehealth.All countries emphasised the critical importance of an integrated response between primary care and public health to conduct surveillance,diagnose cases through testing,provide community-based care unless hospitalisation is required and vaccinate the population to reduce infection spread.
