FITE diabetes: Florida initiative in telehealth and education. Approach to diabetes care for children

Abstract

• Many academic centres provide health care by travelling to remote centres. • Replication of this programme elsewhere has the potential to improve the efficiency of, and save time for, physicians and diabetes treatment teams already trying to meet the demands of their busy schedules. • Reduction in line charges, through creative technology such as Internet Protocol encryption, will allow a more cost-effective provision of service than in-person visits to outreach sites. • When other cost reductions such as decreased hospitalisation and emergency department use are considered, the costs of telemedicine services are readily justified. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.