Biomedical information technology: Internet and beyond

Information technology deployment in its many forms is the dominant technology force in the nineties. So much of information technology explosion has occurred in a relatively short span of time that one would wonder about what type of paradigm shift to anticipate in the ways these technologies are utilized in the practice of biomedical discipline both in the short and long term future. Collaborative medicine, nationally and globally oriented Patient-Physician-Provider (PPP) electronic health care paradigms and collaborative biomedical research and education possibilities using distributed system capabilities over high speed networks and new multimedia video conferencing technologies, are all on the near-horizon. The creation of "collaboratories" seen as "Centers without Walls" today enables biomedical researchers to do their work without being bound by geographic location. In parallel to the emergence of information technology tools, a new era of dramatic surges in computer power is unveiled with capabilities to explore solutions to some of the most complex biomedical problems. These resources can be shared by national and international researchers and educators via high speed networks. This paper will discuss the latest developments in the emerging field of biomedical information technology and presents a critical evaluation of some of the major issues that need to be addressed prior to effective implementation of these technologies in both clinical and research environments.