E-health: A New Perspective on Global Health

e-health is a process of providing health care via electronic means, in particular over the Internet. The term e-health has been used to describe the variety of activities related to the electronic exchange of health-related data, voice or video. e-health is an emerging field in the intersection of medical informatics, public health and business, referring to health services and information delivered or enhanced through the Internet and related technologies. In a broader sense, the term characterizes not only a technical development, but also a state-of-mind, a way of thinking, an attitude, and a commitment for networked, global thinking, to improve health care locally, regionally, and worldwide using information and communication technology. This paper is commissioned in light of the rising profile of e-health on the international policy agenda and the emerging Indian Programme for Information Technology and related developments in the National Health Service. Few developments in public health today create the sense of energy and opportunity embodied in the word "ehealth". The promise of e-health lies in the manner to build advancements in the development of a health infrastructure. India is actively developing and implementing technological solutions to deliver health information and health care services across the country. These solutions, while exciting and promising, also present new challenges, particularly in regard to acceptable standards, choice of technologies, overcoming traditional jurisdictional boundaries, up-front investment, and privacy and confidentiality. This paper will discuss how e-health provides the opportunity for the patients to maintain independence longer and for the providers to monitor a condition more closely. It also describes the barriers and challenges to and the current status of ehealth. Also, an attempt is made for presenting the e-health status in the Indian scenario. Further, its technological and financial barriers are illustrated and recommendations are provided for the improvement.