VAKe-3G - Video based medical emergency conference with 3G

Guidance from 113-centrals happens in situations where the seconds count! In this project we have looked into if visual communication via mobile phones can be helpful in emergency situations.

Background

The Norwegian Centre for Integrated care and Telemedicine have in cooperation with the Emegency medical section at the University hospital in North Norway looked at the possibilities of using new communication solutions in AMK-centrals.In emergencies and life threatening diseases good decisions have to be made quickly and effective. The AMK-centrals (113) has got advanced communication tools to handle and assist in emergency situations. Development of information happens everyday by phone, radio and electronic tools.

Great demands is being set for health personell that will convey, percieve and interpret the richness of the information in time-pressed situations. We wish to investigate wether or not visual communication on mobile phones can be used to enhance the communication in emegency situations. Highspeed net for mobile phones (3G) is being further developed in Norway. This creates possibilities for video conferences between 3G-phones. In this project we have looked att different technology solutions, how these can be implemented in AMK-centrals and create a simple solution for video communication between caller and AMD-central.

Project description

We have used simulated emergency scenarios where communication between caller and the AMK happend via traditional phone with voice or via a 3G phone where communication happend with both voice and video. During the experiments we measured time and quality of the completed first aid. After each attempt the participants were interviewed with a questionnaire.

The conclusion is that the technology is promising, but requires more development for it to be ready for routine use. There is also a need for more studies and conformity on existing routines to use visual communication in a good way.

Publications

Bolle SR, Scholl J, Gilbert M: Can video mobile phones improve CPR quality when used for dispatcher assistance during simulated cardiac arrest? Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica. 2009, 1: 116-120.http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/121477303/HTMLSTART Johnsen E, Bolle SR: To see or not to see - better dispatcher-assisted CPR with video-calls? A qualitative study based on simulated trials. Resuscitation. 2008 Sep;78(3):320-6. Epub 2008 June 25

Financing

Telemedical Research Commitee (TFU) in Helse Nord.