Recherche

Cannes, April 7, 2008 - As coordinator of the Healthware project co-financed by the European Commission, Thales Alenia Space welcomed physicians and industry representatives from several European countries to a symposium in its Cannes facility (France). This symposium allowed participants to share their reflections on DVB-RCS satellite-based telemedicine services and assess the prerequisites for the sustainable operation of this type of system.

Discussions at the symposium showed that telemedicine services are significantly improving access to high-quality health care in both emergency and normal situations. Satellite-based "e-health" services also improve the quality of life and home healthcare for citizens located in isolated areas by reducing the medical "digital divide" and offering good value for money.

Several live DVB-RCS satellite-based demonstrations were organized during the symposium for the following telemedicine services:

• Real-time video-transmission and collaborative work in an emergency situation, enabling a clinician to remotely analyze an electrocardiogram and advise the medical staff of a Fire Brigade unit. The decision to treat the victim of the road accident was taken on the spot.
• Tele-diagnosis sessions based on X-rays, CT scans and ultrasound exams, between a clinician from a distant hospital - in Poland and Cyprus in this case - and a specialist in a university hospital.
• Tele-consultation of a senior patient suffering from memory troubles and living in a nursing home, by a gerontologist from a university hospital.

One of the main conclusions of the symposium was that telemedicine is a key enabler for the transfer of advanced medical knowledge (specialists, hospitals) to the community level (practitioners, doctors), and even to the patient's home. It also allows a consultation to be filmed and recorded in an Electronic Patient Record for future use.

Pascal Lochelongue, e-Health Projects & Solutions Manager at Thales Alenia Space stated: "At the end of the day, we came to the conclusion that while many telemedicine services were initiated by health professionals in a bottom-up approach, the time has now come to combine this with a top-down approach in which health authorities consider telemedicine services as an integral part of their global e-Health strategies."

Note to editors
The Healthware project is co-funded by the European Commission (EC) through the 6th Framework Programme for Research (FP6). Coordinated by Thales Alenia Space, it is the leading current European satellite-based telemedicine project. Healthware is designed to validate and promote the use of a streamlined, cost-effective satellite technology (DVB-RCS) in remote geographic areas that experience problems with conventional terrestrial telecommunication networks. It will offer the high transmission rates needed to run interactive applications based on videoconferencing, such as collaborative staff meetings, tele-expertise, teleconsultation, tele-training and high-volume data exchanges. For more information on the Healthware project: http://www.healthware.fr and on the EC space R&D program: http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/space_research/index_en.htm

About Thales Alenia Space
European leader in satellite systems and a major player in orbital infrastructures, Thales Alenia Space is a joint venture between Thales (67%) and Finmeccanica (33%). Thales Alenia Space and Telespazio embody the two groups' "Space Alliance". Thales Alenia Space sets the global standard in solutions for space telecoms, radar and optical Earth observation, defense and security, navigation and science. The company has a total of 7,200 employees and 11 industrial sites, with design and manufacturing facilities in France, Italy, Spain and Belgium. www.thalesaleniaspace.com