Jordanian Government and Cisco Roll Out ‘Tele-Health’ Network

March 6, 2013 - PRLog -- AMMAN, Jordan, 06 March 2013: The Government of Jordan and Cisco today unveiled the latest ‘tele-health’ initiatives undertaken through the Jordan Healthcare Initiative (JHI) a strategic public private partnership between the two entities. A press conference to mark the occasion was held at the MENA ICT Forum, in the presence of H.E. Dr. Abdellatif Woreikat (Jordan’s Minister of Health), Major General Dr. Khalaf Jader Al-Sarhan (Deputy Director General of Royal Medical Services), and Nisreen Qatamish Al-Kharabsheh (Director Jordan Breast Cancer Program). They were joined by Cisco’s Ashraf Arafeh, General Manager, for Jordan and Laura Quintana, Senior Director of Corporate Affairs.
Through the JHI, Cisco and the Government of Jordan are providing thought leadership in ICT-enabled healthcare solutions and supporting the implementation of care-at-a-distance solutions. Leveraging Cisco HealthPresence solutions the JHI is facilitating access to quality healthcare services for patients and clinicians from two remote hospitals in northern and southern regions within Jordan, to specialists at an advanced hospital in the capital of Amman.
Highlights/Key Facts:
· Two HealthPresence clinics have now been successfully implemented and are fully operational. The first clinic, launched in June 2011 at Mafraq Governmental Hospital, connects patients from the Mafraq area in northeast Jordan with specialists (Dermatologists, Nephrologists, and Cardiologists) at Prince Hamzah Hospital in Amman. Subsequently, a second clinic was launched in September of 2012 at Queen Rania Hospital in Wadi Mousa, connecting patients from the remote area of south Jordan also with specialists at Prince Hamzah Hospital. As of the 28th February 2013, the clinics have facilitated 823 remote consultations between patients and specialists of which 21% of consultations were for children.
 A mobile health project orchestrated in collaboration with the Jordan Breast Cancer Program (JBCP) and King Hussein Cancer Center (KHCC) has also been operational since February 2013. Serving the female population from the Mafraq area, this is the first mobile cancer screening unit in Jordan to utilize Cisco technology solutions. A second mobile clinic is scheduled to go live in the summer 2013 timeframe. The Jordan Breast Cancer Program is a national program led and supported by the King Hussein Cancer Foundation, for the development and provision of comprehensive services for the early detection and screening of all women in Jordan.  The Cisco solutions being utilised include Cisco TelePresence, high definition video conferencing and advanced audio, for the purpose of collaboration and communication between clinical staff; as well as Cisco networking and security technologies to facilitate the transfer of mammography images from the mammography unit at the mobile clinic to the radiology department at KHCC. In addition, Cisco digital media signage has been provided and is being used to educate patients and staff involved in the program.
   A clinical collaboration project with the Royal Medical Services (RMS) has also been launched. Phase 1 of this initiative will enable clinician-to-clinician collaboration using Cisco TelePresence technology and a third party mini-PACS solution.  Clinicians from King Hussein Medical Center in Amman (KHMC) and Prince Zaid Bin Al-Hussein Hospital in Tafilah (PZH) will be able to communicate and collaborate on clinical cases, including sharing radiology images and reports.  Phase II will focus on mammography images generated at PZH and the National Women's Health Care Center at Tafilah. RMS plays a key role in the Jordanian armed forces by providing healthcare services for the armed forces members and their families. It also provides comprehensive health insurance for more than a third of the kingdom and the provision of curative medical services in military hospitals for all citizens and residents in some governorates throughout Jordan.  
 The Jordan Healthcare Initiative was originally initiated by His Majesty King Abdullah II and Cisco’s Chairman and CEO John Chambers at the World Economic Forum’s January 2010 Annual Meeting in Davos. The two leaders agreed to have their representatives explore opportunities for Cisco and the Jordanian government to collaborate to transform Jordan’s healthcare delivery system. It is governed by a Steering Committee comprising committee members who include senior government healthcare representatives and a director from Cisco. The steering committee provides strategic direction for the JHI and has established a program management office that reports to the members and is responsible for all JHI operations.