Med-e-Tel, the International Educational and Networking Forum for eHealth, Telemedicine and Health ICT, is gearing up for its fifth edition in Luxembourg, 18-20 April 2007. With a proven track record of highly efficient and effective networking, Med-e-Tel attracts yearly a highly qualified audience of industry representatives, governement officials, healthcare providers, payers/insurers and researchers from 50 countries around the globe. Supported by the International Society for Telemedicine & eHealth and the European Commission, the Med-e-Tel opening session will not only feature representatives from the above mentioned institutions next April, but also the World Health Organization's eHealth Coordinator, the Acting President of the World Academy of Biomedical Technologies (WABT/UATI-ICET/UNESCO) and the Director of Global Healthcare Strategy at industry giant Intel.
General topics of the conference program and exhibition showcase include:
- personal health monitoring
- disease management and medication compliance
- ehealth/telecare for independent or assisted living in the ageing society
- standardization, interoperability
- wireless/mobile technologies
- ehealth/telemedicine for developing countries and underserved areas
- project results and presentations
- and more...
Also a workshop on the topic of "User Experience Guidelines for Telecare Services" will be organized by the ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute) Specialist Task Force on Telecare.
The International Association of Homes and Services for the Ageing (IAHSA) will conduct a conference session about "The Need for User and Provider Involvement in the Development of Ageing Services Technologies". The session will investigate how technology acts as a condition and driver for economic participation of senior citizens and will draw lessons from European comparative studies. Furthermore, the In-HAM living labs will be highlighted. These labs are designed to help demonstrate, test and design specific building and living technology in order to strive for a maximal independence for elderly persons or persons with disabilities. And representatives of the American Center for Ageing Services Technologies (CAST) will discuss how emerging technologies can improve the ageing experience.
The steering committee of a Belgian home healthcare automation/telecare project will convene at Med-e-Tel and use the event as a springboard to international partnerships, cooperation and knowledge sharing. Aims of the project are to generate innovative solutions by bringing together users - i.e. carers, patients, disabled, elderly - and solution providers - i.e. industry and researchers. The project is lead by IMEC (Europe's leading independent research center in the field of micro- and nanoelectronics, nanotechnology, enabling design methods and technologies for ICT systems), the Belgian Centre for Domotics and Immotics, and In-HAM (Innovationcenter in Housing for Adapted Movement).
A regional (Be-Lux) seminar, coordinated by the Luxembourg CRP-Sant©, will look at how healthcare performance and quality can be improved with the use of new IT tools. Leading healthcare providers and policy makers from the region, together with companies like Cisco, Hippocad, IBM, IRIS, Noemalife will provide market and policy updates and present successful business cases.
Med-e-Tel, in association with Rays of Hope Foundation and HealthSpan International, will also be setting up a 'funding' roundtable discussion at the Med-e-Tel 2007 edition. The roundtable will place together those who have specific healthcare needs (especially in developing and emerging regions), with those who provide sustainable solutions (with the use of ICT tools) and with those who represent the necessary material and financial resources (i.e. 'funders' who can enable the solutions for those in need). "It is a sincere effort to go beyond the talk, and to take action and get things actually implemented where they are needed the most," says Bill Parlette of the Rays of Hope Foundation. Points of view as diverse as possible will be solicited from individuals or corporate/funder representatives already known for their commitment to making a difference in healthcare.
Overall, Med-e-Tel offers great networking opportunities. It is the perfect forum to share experiences and knowledge and a chance to gain new insights and establish new business contacts and partnerships. Med-e-Tel also offers the opportunity to see and evaluate actual products, technologies and services and to find out how they can be beneficial for you, your organization, or your healthcare system.
Related news articles:
- Med-e-Tel's Profile