Doctors Without Borders‪.‬

Abstract: The practice of medicine has historically been radically altered by the introduction of innovative technologies. By comparison, the personal relationship between doctor and patient remained, until recently, remarkably unchanged. Within the last decade, however, this fundamental interaction has come under question. Technological developments have allowed doctors to supervise operations by video, electronically exchange x-rays and charts, and provide direct clinical, preventative, diagnostic, and therapeutic services to patients over great distances without ever leaving their clinics. These practices have been collectively dubbed "telemedicine." After many decades, telemedicine is finally claiming its place in health care, in countries as far-ranging as the US, Saudi Arabia, Ireland, Jordan, and Malaysia. But while technology is developing rapidly, the response from the medical profession has been rather slow. Now in its early years, telemedicine will have to overcome the same legal, financial, personal and cultural obstacles that have confronted every other technological change in the history of medicine.