Telemedicine activities at Memorial University of Newfoundland: A historical review, 1975-1997

Memorial University of Newfoundland has been continuously involved in telem edicine activities since 1975. Unlike most early telemedicine programs, whi ch did not continue after grant funding ended, Memorial made the transition to create a self-sufficient Telemedicine Centre. Key to its success was th e vision and drive of its founder, Dr. Max House, and adherence to the foll owing principles: (1) all activities were based on a legitimate need; (2) t he simplest, least expensive technology was used to meet the need; (3) the network was shared by a variety of users; and (4) users were given proper t raining and support. Over the years, Memorial has been involved in 30 telem edicine projects, many of which became ongoing services. Although most init ial activity was health related, educational activities have played an incr easingly important role. In 1997, the Telemedicine Centre delivered approxi mately 7000 hours of programming and administered a network of 247 dedicate d audioconference sites in 161 communities (168 of the sites had telewriter workstations and 75 had multimedia workstations) and eight videoconferenci ng sites. Approximately 70% of all programming was distant high school and university education, 20% health education, 5% clinical activities, and 5% other uses. Current clinical activities include tele-electroencephalograms, tele-ultrasonography, tele-nuclear medicine, child telepsychiatry, general teleconsultation from a remote nursing station, and general teleconsultati on from an offshore oil platform. Lessons learned from more than 20 years o f telemedicine experience are presented.