VMedNet was established by the Health Sciences Center at the University of Virginia with partial funding provided by the National Science Foundation and the National Library of Medicine in the form of an Internet Connections Grant. Hospitals currently connected include Martha Jefferson in Charlottesville, Augusta Medical Center in Fishersville, Rockingham Memorial in Harrisonburg, and Culpeper Memorial. The aim is to provide Internet connections to several regional healthcare facilities in Central and Western Virginia, thus furnishing rural health care providers with easier access to information services at the University of Virginia and other Internet sites. VMedNet acts as a central clearinghouse of clinical and educational resources. The most popular use at the present time is obtaining information on Continuing Medical Education offerings.
Users can click on courses to get descriptions or request brochures.
Our next step is to make online registration possible and to develop online courses that can be completed for CME credit. The original purpose of the consult option was to have physicians contact other physicians at UVa conveniently, with Pediatrics as the primary participant at this time. We respond to these requests either by sending information or referring them to a physician. We hope to further develop the consult option so that providers will be able to schedule appointments and telemedicine consults. We have been trying to connect rural physicians electronically, but have always had difficulty getting access to them at their homes and offices, where they are most likely to utilize these services.