350 needs in low resource settings

Maria ZolfoInstitute of Tropical Medicine,

Antwerp, Belgium

BACKGROUNDBACKGROUND

Telemedicine is a way to deliver health care in remote areas

E-mails have been used for years as a low cost telemedicine support for colleagues working in low resource settings, by the Institute of Tropical

Medicine, Antwerp (ITMA)

BACKGROUNDBACKGROUND

In 2003 the ITMA set up a computer aided training project to guide doctors in the implementation of antiretrovirals (ARVs) and AIDS care in developing countries

AIMS (I)AIMS (I)

To facilitate the introduction of high-quality ARV care for HIV/AIDS patients, living in resource limited settings by providing adequate technical support for ARVs and management of opportunistic infections (OIs), to clinician from the South

AIMS (II)AIMS (II)

To provide continuous medical education in the field of HIV/AIDS for doctors following SCART, through a discussion forum on a medical web site, supporting and guiding medical decision making and management of difficult clinical cases

Method of working

Expert advice from HIV/AIDS specialists is offered to colleagues in the field through a discussion forum on http://telemedicine.itg.be

Initial partners in the field:

Sihanouk Hospital Center of Hope, Phom Penh, Cambodia

Central Hospital, Kigali, Rwanda

Institute of Tropical Medicine Alexander Von Humboldt, Lima, Peru

MSF-Belgium projects in South East Asia

1st year activity

2nd year evaluation

255/339 clinical cases

84/339 open questions

ARV

OIs Δ & Rx

Main topics

24/339

165/339

150/339

OIs Δ & Rx

ARV general use

ARV & TB

ARV side effects

ARV resistance

ARV with OIs

ARV in PMTCT

IRIS

Main topics

24/339

150/339

165/339

2nd year evaluation details

ARVs details

ARV oriented questions

46

18

41

35

6

12

7

ARV general use

ARV & TB

ARV side effects

ARV resistance

ARV with OIs

ARV in PMTCT

IRIS

Satellife (http://www.healthnet.org/)

Women and Children and HIV

Clinical Care Options

Medscape The Body Aidsmap

General perception from the fieldGeneral perception from the field

E-mail/discussion forum support is considered important for :

patient management increased knowledge of medical staff avoiding referrals access to medical literature

SURVEY

Off line function for posting !

http://telemedicine.itg.be

Thank you!