Warner has spent the last two years as director of the American Telemedicine Association's technology task force, whose purpose is to explore alternate ways of thinking about technology and the phenomenon of providing medical care at a distance. The group is a component of G-7, which comprises the leading industrialized nations in the world. NeatTools can be used to transmit data from medical monitoring devices anywhere in the world via the Internet without having to invent new software systems for every device, Warner says. New devices are produced weekly. The technology will allow medical expertise to be shared down the hall, across the street or across the oceans.
Distance is irrelevant.
The CRNR is in the early stages of collaborating with the Sister Kenny Institute in Minneapolis, Minn., on designing a system that would enable rehabilitation therapists to monitor patients' progress via the Internet. ESFD uses computer interface devices that stimulate patients both physically and perceptually to help them recover from physical injuries. The next step is to develop a NeatTools version of ESFD that would allow for distance therapy via the World Wide Web. Clients would download the device from the Web and work on their therapy at home, while their progress is monitored via the Internet by the institute's therapists.