A feasibility study of realtime telemedicine in Croatia using Internet videoconferencing

Abstract

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.

The emergence of e-health: using virtual reality and the internet for providing advanced healthcare services

“…(at the best image quality), with an average latency of 3 seconds, the results suggested that Internet-based videoconferencing is acceptable for certain telemedicine applications [133]. Successful results with a limited bandwith have also been obtained by an E-health teleconsultation application developed in Croatia: 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 using $700 computer systems [134].…”

From Telehealth to E-Health: Internet and Distributed Virtual Reality in Health Care

“…53 Successful results with a limited bandwith have also been obtained by an e-health teleconsultation application developed in Croatia: a 33 kbit/s link was established between a team of specialists in the general hospital, Sveti Dub (Zagreb), and a general practitioner's clinic in Selca (on the island of Brac) using $700 computer system. 54 Another relevant issue is that of ensuring equitable access to health resources by different demographic groups. There are already considerable differences in access to health care in the world.…”

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“…A study of this system 18 found that fewer total and urgent referrals to health posts resulted in an annual net savings of $320,126. Likewise, telemedicine clinics established for two islands in the Bay of Naples 19 and in Croatia 20 to provide remote populations with real-time telemedicine via video conferencing reported net savings in both countries.…”