A feasibility study of realtime telemedicine in Croatia using Internet videoconferencing.
We explored the feasibility of realtime telemedicine in Croatia using Internet videoconferencing. A 33 kbit/s link was established between a team of specialists in the General Hospital 'Sveti Duh' in Zagreb and a general practitioner's clinic in Selca, on the island of Brac. During a two-week study, 16 patients (median age 51 years) were studied. Twenty-one teleconsultations (seven initial and 14 follow-up visits) were conducted, 13 with a specialist in internal medicine, six with a surgeon and two with a neurologist. In 18 cases (86%) telemedicine successfully replaced hands-on examination. The mean duration of the teleconsultations was 7.2 min (initial visits 7.4 min, follow-up visits 7.1 min). Each computer system cost about US$700. The total connection cost for the study was US$4.95. The teleconsultations saved the patients US$272 in travel costs. We suggest forming a permanent on-line specialist service connected to networked clinics via the Internet to improve access to health-care in Croatia.
Department of Clinical Immunology and Pulmonology, General Hospital Sveti Duh, Zagreb, Croatia. vostojic@mef.hr
V
V
Ostojić
A
A
Stipić-Marković
Z
Z
Tudman
N
N
Zivković
B
B
Cvorisćec
T
T
Trajbar
C L
CL
Donnelly
M
M
Grgić
P
P
Matek
M
M
Lusić
M
M
Iskra
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D017523:Croatia; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D017216:Telemedicine / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*