Report

Telemedicine 2017 Report

TSI Maharashtra Chapter and Ruby Hall Clinic jointly organized the International Telemedicine Conference on 9th, 10th and 11th Nov. 2017 at the Sheraton Grand in Pune. The theme of the conference was “Digital Health – Shaping The Future of Health Care” As usual we had a mixed audience including Doctors, Engineers, IT specialist, Regulators, Policy makers, Researchers, vendors, innovators, and a contingent from Russia and Baltic showcasing Telemedicine and communication technologies currently in vogue. The conference was attended by more than 350 participants from India and Abroad. Key topics covered were Telepractices viz. Tele Cardiology, Tele Oncology, Tele Diabetes,Tele Radiology, Tele Psychiatry, Tele Stroke, Tele Ophthalmology, Telemedicine in extreme environment, Virtual clinics, e Labs, e ICU. Presentations were par excellent and good discussions were generated during each sessions, and lots of participants requested organizers for more time. Another highlight was the Indo Russian Forum, represented by 5 Russians in connection with 70th year of Indo Russian Friendship Treaty and the BRICS session both of which were coordinated by Dr. S. K. Mishra our own P. P. TSI and Maharashtra Chapter places on record, its gratitude to the doyen for all his help. Plenary sessions, Legal & Regulatory sessions, Telemedicine Networks around the world were other highlights of the conference.
For the first time Maharashtra Chapter initiated The Awards for Best Mobile App for Virtual Clinic, Best App for Social Responsibility, Best Paper etc.
The Conference was recognized by Maharashtra Medical Council, Mumbai with 4 Credit hours.

EDM, Brochures, Posters were used to spread the message of TelePractices via social media, emails and sms. Local Press covered the event adequately Great Demonstrations like AmbuPod, 108 Ambulance Services, in Maharashtra, Practice Management Apps, Mental Health Demonstration TeleECHO by NIMHANS, Workshop on EHR / Standardizations by CDAC were well received. Keynotes address, by IMA President Dr. Ravi Wankhedkar, led to IMA, committing at National level to hold National Telemedicine Day on 24th March every year, Town Hall meeting with Dr. Khalid Moidu USA drew lot of interest in terms of capacity building in Telemedicine. Healthcare Digital Future by Avaya and Reaching the Unreached in immunization by Serum Institute of Indias Dr. Prasad Kulkarni and Tele Paediatric led by Dr. Meenu Singh and Dr. Dhananjay Mangal were eye openers.

Conference also discussed 3D Printing, Block Chain, Artificial Intelligence and 360̊ Interoperability in Healthcare, State Telemedicine Network, by Odisha & Maharashtra were well demonstrated. Conference partners SIIs Reaching the unreached, Bajaj Allianz showcasing Digitally connected Health Eco system , Telemedicine goes instant by Practo, Healthlink, Hello Doc were very well presented. Tele Neonatology and Tele Orthopaedics were new Telepractices that were discussed in length. Prof. K. Ganapathy session on NeuroSciences and Tele Stroke with Dr. Madhavan from USA went excellent.

Mr. Virender Kumar Chairman DECU – ISRO led the Govt. initiatives in Telemedicine along with Mr. B. S. Bedi, Dr. Supten Sarbhadikari , Mr L.S Satyamurthy and Mr. Gaur Sunder. TCIL’s experience in implementing eHealth projects globally was well expressed and showcased by Mr. A. Sheshagiri Rao. CDAC led by Dr. Hemant Darbari gave future direction of Technology in Healthcare.

Over 50 free papers were presented at the conference.

Presidential Oration by Prof. K. Selva Kumar took the cake. He vividly explained his journey and milestones in Telemedicine and the audience was awe stuck. All the Past Presidents , members of Exe. Committee from the National and State bodies were extremely helpful and joined hands to make Telemedicon 2017 a great success with support from the Headquarters and dynamic President TSI Prof. K Selva Kumar. A citation was given to Dr. Vijay G. Prabhakar and the two Past Presidents Dr. B. S. Ratta and Dr. B. N. Mohanty.

Any omission in the report is not intentional but may be an oversight and the committee seeks pardon. The entire show would not have been possible without the management of Sheraton Grand and event organisers MedVent to whom we are much obliged.

Dr. B. S. Ratta.
President
TSI Maharashtra Chapter