Personalized Telehealth in the Future: A Global Research Agenda

Abstract

Telecommunication technologies have been used to bring healthcare expertise to the point of care since the 19th century. In 1878, The Lancet reported the use of the telephone to reduce unnecessary physician visits and, in 1910, a tele-stethoscope had already been described.¹ During the mid-20th century, NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) used remote monitoring systems to measure astronauts’ physiological functions. The Space Technology Applied to Rural Papago Advanced Health Care project further developed this field with the Papago Indians in the southwestern U.S.² However, the greatest strides in remote monitoring technologies for telehealth have occurred over the last 10 years, with a growing evidence base showing their effectiveness in the management of chronic disease.