Experience with telepathology at a tertiary cancer centre and a rural cancer hospital.
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2004-01-30
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Abstract
BACKGROUND: Telepathology allows quick and timely access to an expert opinion, no matter where the patient is located. We analysed the experience with the use of telepathology between a tertiary cancer centre and a rural cancer hospital.
METHODS: Ninety-three cases were analysed in which static telepathology was used to obtain a consultation between Tata Memorial Centre and Nargis Dutt Memorial Cancer Hospital at Barshi, a rural area.
RESULTS: Successful teleconsultation was achieved in all cases. A diagnosis was offered in 92 cases (98.9%) and was deferred in 1 case (1.1%). Complete concordance, clinically unimportant minor discrepancy and hedged diagnosis were obtained in 83 cases (90.2%). Major discrepancies were encountered in 9 cases (9.7%). The number of images per case ranged from 3 to 27 (average: 7 images). Images were of diagnosable quality in 89.2% of cases. Most of the cases (77.4%) were reported within 3 days; 32.2% were reported within 8 hours (a single working day) and 45.1% within 1-3 days.
CONCLUSION: Telemedicine can be effectively used to bridge the gap between medically underprivileged, geographically distant rural areas and advanced centres using the static store and forward methodology.
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Desai S, Patil R, Chinoy R, Kothari A, Ghosh TK, Chavan M, Mohan A, Nene BM, Dinshaw KA. Experience with telepathology at a tertiary cancer centre and a rural cancer hospital. National Medical Journal of India. 2004 Jan-Feb; 17(1): 17-9