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Wednesday, Mar. 23, 2005 | ||
Piedmont launches telemedicinePiedmont Hospital has launched its telemedicine program in partnership with Georgia Insurance and Fire Commissioner John Oxendine and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia. Piedmont Hospital is one of two inaugural specialty centers in the state to offer telemedicine services. The program will enable Piedmont physicians to provide specialty healthcare via a teleconferencing system to patients at two south Georgia hospitals, located in Bainbridge and Cordele. Using real-time video equipment, Piedmonts specialists in Atlanta can examine, diagnose and treat patients who live in the rural Georgia communities. During the launch event, cardiologist Charles W. Wickliffe, M.D., demonstrated the capabilities of the hospitals telemedicine technology by performing a cardiac test on a patient at Memorial Hospital and Manor in Bainbridge - the first cardiac telemedicine test conducted in Georgia as part of this initiative. Cardiology is one of the many specialties offered by Piedmont Hospital through the telemedicine program. We share in the vision that all Georgians should have access to quality medical care, no matter where they live, said R. Timothy Stack, president and CEO of Piedmont Healthcare. The telemedicine program enables Piedmont to offer south Georgia citizens the same first-class health services that we have been providing to the Atlanta community for the past 100 years. Telemedicine relies on high-tech computer systems to link patients and physicians. For example, patients in south Georgia can log on to a special computer at their local hospital that is connected to a camera. Piedmont specialists log on to a similar computer system in Atlanta. Once connected, patients and specialists can see and interact with each other on the video screen. Patient medical records and X-rays may also be transmitted to the providing specialist through the teleconferencing system. Piedmont Hospitals telemedicine program is part of the Georgia Rural Health Care Initiative launched in 2004 by the Georgia Department of Insurance. The program aims to provide quality medical care to rural Georgia communities where there are only a few practicing healthcare specialists. In a letter announcing the program Oxendine stated, When fully realized, this program will ensure that every Georgian is within a 30-minute drive of specialty healthcare. For more information about Piedmont Hospital, visit www.piedmonthospital.org. Piedmont Hospital is a subsidiary of Piedmont Healthcare - which includes Piedmont Fayette Hospital, a 100-bed community hospital in Fayetteville, Ga.; Piedmont Mountainside Hospital, a 35-bed community hospital in Jasper, Ga.; Piedmont Clinic, a 460-member physician network; and the Piedmont Physicians Group, a 72-member primary care physician group with 20 offices throughout metro Atlanta. For more information, visit www.piedmonthospital.org | ||
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