Telemedicine on ‘House’
Like most TV medical dramas, paper charts, handwritten prescriptions (usually for Vicodin) and lots of trial-and-error have been hallmarks of “House MD” since Day 1. Sure, there’s always a lot of advanced diagnostic equipment, but this week I finally find myself compelled to blog about one particular episode of one of my favorite shows.
A special episode airing Sunday night right after the Super Bowl (approximately 10 pm EST) features what looks to be some really cool, high-definition telemedicine. Specifically, House has to treat a researcher at the South Pole, played by Mira Sorvino. Go here and click “Watch Video” for three clips.
Now if only someone could convince Dr. House to try clinical decision support. Then again, the show wouldn’t be nearly as entertaining.
Neil –Thank you for your insights.The real beauty of the “made for TV” technology in this episode is that it could be used from anywhere. House connected from his office and his home. The patient on the other end didn’t even know (nor have to care) where House was physically located.The problem with most telemedicine implementations today is that they focus on connecting location-to-location — not person-to-person. Few companies understand the difference. The real solution to remote care is delivering telemedicine services regardless of location.
I imagine the show’s producers took some liberties there. The webcam built into the laptop that House used from his home likely wasn’t hi-res, and certainly wasn’t HD like the equipment in the hospital. I guess it only really matters what kind of camera is on the patient’s end, however.