Second Balkan Telemedicine and e-Health Seminar held in Tirana

TIRANA, Oct. 22 – The Second Balkan Telemedicine and e-Health Seminar was held Oct. 21-23 in Tirana with the participation of senior medical personalities.
Janez Drnovsek, President of Slovenia, became the Honorary Chairman and Sponsor of the Second Balkan Telemedicine and e-Health Seminar.
Such an important telemedicine and e-health event was organized by the International Virtual e-Hospital in collaboration with USAID/Albania and Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center (TATRC/MRMC), Fort Detrick, Maryland (USA). It was also supported by the US State Department’s Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs (ECA).
The theme of the Second Intensive Balkan Telemedicine and e-Health Seminar was ‘Current Principles and Practices of Telemedicine and e-Health.’
Participants were introduced to the most current principles and practices of telemedicine and e-Health by some of the most renowned speakers and experts in the world on Telemedicine and e-Health from universities and representatives of international associations and other organizations of telemedicine and e-Health.
A special program highlighted the activities of the Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center (TATRC/MRMC) at a special session called “Military Telemedicine and e-Health: From Laboratory to Battlefield.”
Telemedicine can be defined as the investigation, monitoring and management of patients, using systems which allow ready access to expert advice (specialists) and to patient information, no matter where the patient or relevant information is located. This involves the transfer of medical information from one location to another. Increasingly, computer technology will allow much of the work currently being carried out in hospitals, to be carried out in people’s homes, in an effort not only to improve the efficiency and standards of patient care, but also to drastically reduce medical costs. One of the most important elements is the application of educational programs and should be an integral part of the telemedicine programs.
Rendering medical care to people in extreme conditions, such as remote and mountainous sites affected by natural or man made catastrophes, or simply in territories that do not have (access) to modern medical care, is one of the best applications of telemedicine. Telemedicine improves the mobility of patient care, and assists the access to all kinds of medical information. The International Virtual e-Hospital is an organization that creates and establishes self-sustainable telemedicine and e-health programs around the world and helps in rebuilding medical systems in the developing world, one country at a time, using telemedicine, advanced technologies, and cultural exchanges and collaboration.