In other news, China launched its first astronaut into space, for God-knows-what.
Posted on 03/17/2005 9:45:50 AM PST by CarrotAndStick
Cochin, India: India plans to launch a communications satellite exclusively for health care so patients and doctors in remote rural areas can consult specialists in cities, the head of the country's space agency said on Thursday.
Healthsat, to be launched within four years, will have wireless and terrestrial communication links, G M Nair, chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation, told reporters.
"Right now we will use the existing satellite transponders to serve 100 telehealth stations, including district hospitals and speciality hospitals, around the country," Nair said.
"Next year we may touch 500 such stations and in 2007 about 1,000. So within the next three to four years we will have one exclusive satellite for the purpose of telemedicine," he said.
Nair said the organisation may accept help from private corporations to fund the project.
"By the second half of this year we will bring in private partners. We are also thinking of helping neighbouring countries such as Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Myanmmar on their telemedicine projects," he said.
The space agency's telemedicine project, in which a patient in a remote area can consult a specialist in a city through a video satellite link, was launched in 2001 and so far has treated more than 25,000 patients.
"With 75 percent of the Indian population living in rural and remote areas and more than 75 percent of the expert doctors living in urban areas, the only way to bridge the rural-urban divide appears to be through telemedicine," Nair said.
In other news, China launched its first astronaut into space, for God-knows-what.
Watch out, this is not for internal use-- it's for outsourcing medicine to India... It's already being done with radiology stuff....
Yep; a local hospital (central Pennsylvania) sends it's films to India for interpretation; they even do "wet reads", and the results are back in 1 hour.
I was interested in becoming a radiologist... until I realized that my job would be outsourced to India some day...
You misread the article, telemedicine has little scope for outsourcing medicine. On the other hand, India presently has telemedicine systems installed in many rural areas, where doctors from big cities give guidance to doctors in rural areas, to treat complicated conditions, which otherwise would not have been treated at all.
The pioneer of this system is a winner of several awards for his innovation.
You don't think telemedicine from india won't happen here? Instead of paying a superstar specialist $$$ for telemedicine guidance, some Indian will be paid a much smaller amount...
If someone opts to put their life "over a wire" then it is their choice. But this isnt something to beat india with. About ur decision not to become a radiologist..Radiology is the most sought after discipline among doctors today. :-))))
About ur decision not to become a radiologist..Radiology is the most sought after discipline among doctors today. :-))))
Yea, but by the time I make it out of medical school, it will be outsourced. Think about it, broad band, satelite, HD images.. Why do we have to pay a radiologist $500k + over here when we can get it for $50k in india??
See my point? Why spend all that effort in med school to graduate and make an xray technician salary due to unfair international labor laws? I don't think so..
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