Virtual Visits to ICU from Anywhere in the World!!
In a first of its kind initiative, Apollo Telemedicine Networking Foundation Chennai has introduced virtual visits to the ICU from anywhere in the world. An ICU admission is an extremely traumatic event for the patient as well as for their near and dear.
To ensure maximum clinical care and to reduce the chances of infection, physical visits to ICU’s by relatives and friends are kept to the absolute minimum.It is also impractical for the primary consultant to make repeated physical visits to the ICU, in order to review the patients. The family would like a status report directly from the primary consultant in the presence of the patient. In an ICU setting sometimes, this is not possible.
The I-SEE-U™ facility has been designed with this in mind, to enable virtual Visits to individual ICU cubicles, both by consultants, relatives and friends using internet, through a PC, laptop and even a smart phone. The patient’s authorized relatives and friends can now virtually “SEE” an ICU patient by remotely switching on a camera installed over the ICU bed. Elaborating the functionality.Prof K.Ganapathy, President, ATNF pointed out that using very simple user friendly Pan,Tilt, Zoom and other functions of the camera, ECG wave forms and all Virtual ICU readings on all monitors could be remotely seen with much clarity.Consultants can use this facility to make additional virtual visits 24/7 and remotely re-evaluate the patient in great detail. This facility would particularly be useful to NRI’s living abroad, who wish to actually see betterment in their near and dear in ICU. The consultant during a physical visit can also virtually interact with the relatives who will be in the Virtual Visit Room.
