Training for telemedicine

All technology requires training. Simply installing videoconferencing equip ment in a hospital or health centre, and leaving the manufacturer's manual nearby, is not sufficient to encourage or maintain its use for telemedicine . Presenting clinicians and other users with thick policy and procedure doc uments to be read and understood is also not helpful. Following initial awa reness raising about telemedicine and its potential, staff must be properly trained: not just in how to turn on the equipment but in how to use it eff ectively for consultation, education and administrative purposes. Training needs to be continual, especially where staff turnover is high. It should b e practical, pitched at different levels, incorporated into mainstream acti vities such as orientation courses and staff development days wherever poss ible, and supplemented with clear, straightforward protocols and user-frien dly instruction manuals.