Background: Today there is much debate about why telemedicine has stalled. Teleradiology is the only\r\nwidespread telemedicine application. Other telemedicine applications appear to be promising candidates for\r\nwidespread use, but they remain in the early adoption stage. The objective of this debate paper is to achieve a\r\nbetter understanding of the adoption of telemedicine, to assist those trying to move applications from pilot stage\r\nto routine delivery.\r\nDiscussion: We have investigated the reasons why telemedicine has stalled by focusing on two, high-level topics:\r\n1) the process of adoption of telemedicine in comparison with other technologies; and 2) the factors involved in\r\nthe widespread adoption of telemedicine. For each topic, we have formulated hypotheses. First, the advantages for\r\nusers are the crucial determinant of the speed of adoption of technology in healthcare. Second, the adoption of\r\ntelemedicine is similar to that of other health technologies and follows an S-shaped logistic growth curve. Third,\r\nevidence of cost-effectiveness is a necessary but not sufficient condition for the widespread adoption of\r\ntelemedicine. Fourth, personal incentives for the health professionals involved in service provision are needed\r\nbefore the widespread adoption of telemedicine will occur.\r\nSummary: The widespread adoption of telemedicine is a major ââ?¬â?? and still underdeveloped ââ?¬â?? challenge that needs\r\nto be strengthened through new research directions. We have formulated four hypotheses, which are all\r\nsusceptible to experimental verification. In particular, we believe that data about the adoption of telemedicine\r\nshould be collected from applications implemented on a large-scale, to test the assumption that the adoption of\r\ntelemedicine follows an S-shaped growth curve. This will lead to a better understanding of the process, which will\r\nin turn accelerate the adoption of new telemedicine applications in future. Research is also required to identify\r\nsuitable financial and professional incentives for potential telemedicine users and understand their importance for\r\nwidespread adoption.
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