Surgical telementoring-emerging technologies: Comparative Technology in...

Skype for Business is not HIPAA compliant in the United States yet but is approved by Scandinavian authorities

Remote desktop software platforms have very good telestration features but require a separate audio line

OR Network is HIPAA compliant, has telestration features, and is fully integrated with all laparoscopic racks and cameras

STAR platform can be used for open surgery but not yet for laparoscopic surgery

When selecting a telementoring platform, key considerations are hospital budget, telestration capability, data security/HIPAA compliance, use case (fixed educational framework vs emergency), and technical requirements (firewalls, bandwidth, latency)

Telementoring will be important for geographically large areas like Norway, Africa, and the US where people may not have enough experience with certain procedures

A major challenge with telestration in laparoscopic surgery is that when the camera holder moves the camera, the drawn lines no longer correspond to the anatomy

Educational experts outside surgery can help solve telementoring communication problems that surgeons struggle with

Surgical telementoring requires three elements: a pre-existing mentor-mentee relationship, an educational framework (not teleconsultation), and local surgical expertise to manage the disease process