Olivia Alonso and Cristina Dumitrescu
Madrid (EFE).- A briefcase with medical instruments for telediagnosis managed to save the life of a Galician sailor who suffered four heart attacks at sea a few weeks ago, since it allowed a cardiologist to monitor and treat the patient thousands of kilometers away the eight hours that the ship took to reach the nearest port.
This is one of the diagnoses that could be made with this briefcase, baptized Medici, the size of an airplane cabin suitcase, which has been used in the Armed Forces for 25 years -in connection with the Gómez Central Defense Hospital Ulla (Madrid)- and which is now being introduced into the civil field for nursing homes or medical care in emptied Spain.
This was explained in an interview with EFE by Jesús Bustamante, Communications Director of Comitas e-health, the Spanish company that sells these briefcases, valued at around 50,000 euros, “easy to use and transmitted by satellite or Wi-Fi” and with batteries for an autonomy of 10 hours.
Saving lives and diagnosing at sea
The Organization of Associated Producers of Large Freezer Tuna Vessels (Opagac) has signed an agreement with the company that manufactures the cases and with a private chain of hospitals to implement this telemedicine system on board 12 vessels of the Spanish tuna fleet that operates in three oceans.
A few weeks ago, a fisherman who began to have problems with cold sweating and tachycardia was fishing in one of these vessels, with which his companions contacted the reference hospital on that ship.
“When he was being monitored, he had a first heart attack, and from Vigo the cardiologist gave instructions on the medication and injections that he should be given so that he could survive the total of four heart attacks he suffered until reaching port,” Bustamante stresses.
What do the medici briefcases contain?
The devices are similar to those used in the Armed Forces and have instruments for monitoring vital signs (electrocardiogram, blood pressure, oxygen saturation and temperature).
But they also have a dermoscopic exploration camera to analyze wounds and skin lesions; an otoscope to evaluate the middle and inner ear; a general exploration camera, and an ultrasound machine with different types of probes depending on the needs.
“The idea is that a series of images can be taken from the patient, which are transmitted in real time -through an encrypted and secure network that complies with all the CNI certificates, having been born in the military world- to the center of reference, where a doctor can issue a diagnosis or give a series of indications”, reveals the expert.
Thus, thousands of kilometers away, for example, it is possible to decide whether a soldier who suffers a fracture should be evacuated or simply some dressings should be applied, Bustamante details.
And he insists that the use of these briefcases – there are currently about 60 operatives – “is very simple” because each camera and instrument is labeled with a number so that the relevant instructions for use can be given from the reference center.
Avoid displacement in nursing homes
There are also agreements signed between hospitals and nursing homes so that they can provide health services for 24 hours, even if the doctor is not present. Only if the elderly travel to the nursing or treatment room of the center, the connection could be established with the public hospital that most residences have as a reference.
“This would make it possible to avoid unnecessary trips and waiting in the emergency room,” according to Jesús Bustamante, who emphasizes its great utility in towns where hospitals do not have all the specialties and hundreds of kilometers have to be traveled to reach the right center.
Telemedicine with diagnosis for emptied Spain
There are also open conversations between the manufacturing company and some autonomous community so that the briefcase or other types of similar solutions, such as mobile units, can be used in the so-called Spain emptied.
These, in addition to containing the same instruments as the briefcase, allow X-rays to be taken with all lead certifications and could be used by rural doctors, as the company representative points out.
