Page 13 - Part 1 Introduction to Telemedicine

SVMIC Introduction to Telemedicine

it as, “The use of electronic information and telecommunications

technologies to support long-distance clinical health care, patient
and professional health-related education, public health and health

administration.”
5
It is important to recognize that electronic communication makes

geopolitical boundaries nearly as porous as topographical ones.

International authorities are just as concerned with overseeing
extraterritorial medical practice as are the States of the U.S. The

European Commission’s definition of telemedicine is, ‘‘the provision

of healthcare services, through the use of ICT [information and
communication technology], in situations where the health

professional and the patient (or two health professionals) are not in
the same location. It involves secure transmission of medical data

and information, through text, sound, images or other forms needed

for the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of patients.”
6
For the purposes of practitioners and facilities, the first question

that needs to be addressed is the legal framework governing
the activity that is being contemplated. Is it telemedicine? And,

is it legal?

Criminal liability may arise from violating licensing or other laws;
but, exposures to civil liability (i.e., malpractice) that go with the

practice of medicine are not canceled when the practice happens

at a distance—in fact, some may be amplified. A more detailed
discussion of professional liability follows in a later section.

5 https://www.healthit.gov/topic/health-it-initiatives/telemedicine-and-telehealth [7/16/18]
6 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=celex:52008DC0689 [7/16/18]

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