Telemedicine and Integrated Health Care Delivery: Compounding Malpractice Liability

Telemedicine became a significant part of the health care equation long before we realized what it was or how important it will be in the future. Telephone discussions and consultations between health care providers have been a part of medical practice since Alexander Graham Bell gifted society with telephones. Furthermore, who among us has not been transfixed watching and learning about open heart surgery on cable television? Propelled by the information superhighway and the breadth of emerging computer and communication technologies, telemedicine will change the face of medicine and methods of interaction between providers and patients. Access, quality and cost of health care may all improve, but not without the sacrifice of some time-honored norms in medical practice.