Combining continuing education with expert consultation via telemedicine in Cambodia.

We present a Cambodian surgical centre's experience with a collaboration in which complicated orthopaedic cases were presented to a panel of consultants using free online videoconferencing software, providing a combined opportunity for both continuing education and the enhancement of patient care. Effects of the case conference on patient care were examined via a retrospective review and clinician perspectives were elicited via a qualitative survey. The case conference altered patient care in 69% of cases. All Cambodian staff reported learning from the conference and 78% reported changes in their care for patients not presented at the conference. Real-time videoconferencing between consultants in the developed world and physicians in a developing country may be an effective, low-cost and easily replicable means of combining direct benefits to patient care with continuing medical education. PMID: 24322763 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Source: Tropical Doctor - Category: Tropical Medicine Authors: Tags: Trop Doct Source Type: research