Summary
Background Developing countries need telemedicine applications that help in many situations,
when physicians are a small number with respect to the population, when specialized
physicians are not available, when patients and physicians in rural villages need
assistance in the delivery of health care. Moreover, the requirements of telemedicine
applications for developing countries are somewhat more demanding than for developed
countries. Indeed, further social, organizational, and technical aspects need to be
considered for successful telemedicine applications in developing countries.
Objective We consider all the major projects in telemedicine, devoted to developing countries,
as described by the proper scientific literature. On the basis of such literature,
we want to define a specific taxonomy that allows a proper classification and a fast
overview of telemedicine projects in developing countries. Moreover, by considering
both the literature and some recent direct experiences, we want to complete such overview
by discussing some design issues to be taken into consideration when developing telemedicine
software systems.
Methods We considered and reviewed the major conferences and journals in depth, and looked
for reports on the telemedicine projects.
Results We provide the reader with a survey of the main projects and systems, from which
we derived a taxonomy of features of telemedicine systems for developing countries.
We also propose and discuss some classification criteria for design issues, based
on the lessons learned in this research area.
Conclusions We highlight some challenges and recommendations to be considered when designing
a telemedicine system for developing countries.
Citation: Combi C, Pozzani G, Pozzi G. Telemedicine for developing countries: a survey and
some design issues.
Keywords
Telemedicine - developing countries - medical records
