Autres nouvelles The role of internet in healthcare - The Herald

You wake up feeling a slight tickle in your throat. You try and shake it off and drink lots of water. After a few hours, it's still there. Instead of calling your mom or making an appointment with the doctor, you head to the Internet. Today, anyone with a computer and a connection can get online and find a variety of results, ranging from simple sore throat to the more serious, like bronchitis and asthma.

The information technology revolution is being described as the most important development in the history of humankind since the industrial revolution. Characterised as "The Third Wave" by Alvin Toffler, in his book of the same title.

The computer, invented initially to process information, slowly grew into a storehouse of information. This network further acquired the capability of distributing electronically processed information to all and sundry, overcoming every conceivable form of barriers, including geographical and political. Today, it is a global collaborative medium and a rich resource of information of all kinds -- science, technology, research, education, and commerce.

With continuing advances in information and communication technology, the applications of computers in medicine have increased rapidly, and have the potential to revolutionise healthcare. By re-architecturing the workplace around computer-based technology, doctors, researchers, and other healthcare providers are creating a new vision of work and organisation.