Towards a methodology for developing and implementing best practices in telehealth and telemedicine

One objective of the growing telehealth and telemedicine literature base is to inform potential adopters and raise their awareness through pilot proje cts. However, pilot studies often fair to create sustainable solutions beca use certain conditions are needed for long term success: (1) matching needs to appropriate solutions: while needs assessment can ide ntify needs, adopters must view, test, and experience potential solutions u nder a number of circumstances; (2) change and new technology: technological implementation brings both for eseen and unforeseen changes, difficult to forecast, and pilot projects can create artificial expectations; (3) awareness of context: there has been a pervasive tendency to treat tele medicine or telehealth as separate from the context of health care delivery , but telemedicine is only a communication and information tool and should not be considered as separate from other health care delivery activities; ( 4) availability of long term funding: while loans, government grants and pr ivate sector partnering can bridge gaps temporarily, sustainable solutions require that savings from existing systems can be applied to pay for telehe alth and telemedicine installations. This paper makes a case for adopting b est practices by proposing that a data base of case studies documenting bes t practices and success factors be developed and made widely available.