Engadget says South Korea’s Ministry of Information and Communication is outfitting 100 elderly and disabled folks in Daegu City with so-called bioshirts, which monitor a patient’s vital signs and wirelessly signal for help if anything is awry.
Called the “U-Healthcare Service”, the $1.4 million program is initially targeting senior citizens who live alone, as well as patients with chronic ailments, and also provides options for running self-diagnostics, enabling remote monitoring, and even rudimentary medical consultations.
U.S. firms Sensatex (left) makes “smart” clothing with built-in sensors while Echelon (right) is creating buildings wired up with an open-model control network.
The International Conference on Ubiquitous Healthcare, August 28 – 29, in Seoul, may be even more relevant as the threat of Bird Flu comes closer and the need for remote telemedicine facilities become clear (in retrospect). There’s a shift from ”E” (Internet) to ”U” (Ubiquitous) services, says Korea IT Times.
How long until Indian and Korean centers link up to create outsourced telemedicine clinics globally? Not soon enough for some. We share the technology. Cracking the insurance code may be the ultimate breakthrough.
