For a fully functional telemedicine system, though, you have to go beyond video, audio, and text. Even this low-end technology has a place in medicine. I'm working on a project that uses the Microsoft Force Feedback Joystick to provide tactile information during a physical exam. Although this project is designed for educational testing purposes, the same technology could be used with real patients, assuming an appropriate sensor could be used at the point of patient contact. Looking to the future Managed care is becoming increasingly interested in telemedicine, because it may allow some aspects of medical practice to be centrally controlled and may provide services more economically than is possible in small, independent clinics.
Some physicians have negative perceptions of the technology.
Reimbursement policies are partial or absent. A formal and universally accessible electronic medical record is lacking. Malpractice issues have yet to be settled, and physician licensing and liability issues restrict practice across state lines. If you've kept up with the current Web browser battle, you'll realize that the technological challenges of expanding the presence of telemedicine seem insignificant compared with the political and economic issues. It's going to be some time before physicians will even come close to experiencing telemedically all of the input and sensations relevant to a typical patient encounter.