A telemedicine system for enabling teaching activities

In order to improve the distance teaching of minimally invasive surgery tec hniques, an integrated system has been developed. It comprises a telecommun ications system, a server, a workstation, some medical peripherals and seve ral computer applications developed in the Minimally Invasive Surgery Centr e. The latest peripherals, such as robotized tele-operating systems for tel esurgery and virtual reality peripherals, have been added. The visualizatio n of the zone to be treated, along with the teacher's explanations, enables the student to understand the procedures of the operation much better.