Telemedicine and Telecare Settings

The Defence Technologies for Health (DTfH) programme is a two-year project fully funded from a Capital Modernisation Fund held by HM Treasury. The project has brought together a number of Research & Development initiatives carried out within QinetiQ. Whilst individually focused on a range of different clinical interests, they were brought together within the over-arching concept of "Defence Technologies for Healthcare". The main aim of DTfH is to undertake "proof of concept" research into the transfer of defence technologies into the Healthcare sector and support the clinical change process. Some concepts are standalone whilst others have been integrated to give an enhanced capability in improved delivery of patient healthcare.

The overall goals of the DTfH project are:

• Enhanced use of bio-medical signal patient monitoring, regardless of whether the patient is lying on the battlefield, in a hospital bed, in transit between hospitals or at home;
• Improved availability of medical information in support of Clinical Audit and the development of Evidence-based medicine;
• Improved access to authorised best practice guidance through Clinical Decision Support (CDS) systems in selected relevant clinical situations and environments;
• Developments to harness advanced defence technologies and expertise in diagnostic signal and image processing, and for patient tracking in the defence environment;
• Supporting opportunities for patients to move more speedily and effectively through the in-patient treatment phase into an appropriately clinically managed "secondary hospital at home" environment.

This vision is aligned to, and takes full account of NHS strategic intentions and initiatives, to which these goals are targeted to support and enhance.

The areas to be covered by this programme have emerged following considerable dialogue with Guys and St Thomas' NHS Hospital Trust, Frimley Park Hospital, The Defence Medical Service, Surrey Ambulance Service, Royal Hospital Hasler, Queen Charlotte's Hospital, Ronkswood Hospital, Joint Royal College Ambulance Liaison Committee and other advisory bodies including Oxford University and Warwick University. The programme focuses on Emergency and Critical Care together with the extension of hospital care to those in the community who would otherwise require hospitalisation within the key specialities of Trauma, Cancer and Cardiology. It includes evaluation of concepts to aid patient transfer, wireless monitoring techniques, diagnostics and telemedicine aids. Outputs from the programme will target both civil and military application in the delivery of patient and distributed healthcare.