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Under the California Telemedicine Pilot Project, more than 15 sites will be equipped to deliver telemedicine primary and specialty services using the networking system known as Cisco HealthPresence.

The "care-at-a-distance" plan will allow patients to visit a center with high-definition cameras and electronic scopes linked to physicians who may be a long distance away. While a physician assistant stands next to the patient and uses the necessary medical instruments, the physician can see or hear what's necessary in the examination, such as a patient's heartbeat. In turn, patients will be able to see and listen the same way as clinicians.

Molina Health Care Inc. is a multi-state managed care organization that arranges for the delivery of healthcare services for Medicaid and Medicare beneficiaries and other government sponsored programs for low-income families and individuals. Molina Healthcare's licensed health plan subsidiaries serve about 1.4 million members.

Besides Molina Healthcare, other centers taking part include Mountain Health & Community Service and LaMaestra Community Health Centers, both in San Diego; and the University of California-Davis. The programs are expected to be operating within the next six months. Amaro says he is unsure how many patients may be served in the telemedicine pilot project.

The networking equipment company, Cisco System, is contributing $10 million in products and services to support the project.

Telemedicine is considered a fast growing area for healthcare delivery options. In fact, Congress has earmarked billions of dollars for broadband infrastructure that can support telemedicine, according to Cisco officials.

Although the Cisco system, known as HealthPresence, has been in clinical settings for two years, company officials say the new pilot demonstrates the scale in which telemedicine can work, as well as new dimensions to the program.

Cisco officials said the state-of-the-art medical diagnostic equipment will provide healthcare professionals with excellent evaluation capabilities that is more "participatory and immersive" than in-person visits or telemedicine programs of the past.

The Association of American Medical Colleges has estimated that the country is facing a potential shortage of 159,000 primary care physicians by 2025 because of population growth, aging, and other factors, according to Cisco. Telemedicine technologies are expected to help scarce healthcare professionals reach the widest possible population in the most efficient manner, according to Cisco.

Source: Cisco System

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