Surgical tele-mentoring is a model within the broad discipline of telemedicine that involves the use of information technology to provide real-time guidance and technical assistance for surgical procedures from an expert surgeon at a different location. This chapter addresses the history and progression, applications, challenges, limitations, and future directions of surgical tele-mentoring as a means to distribute advanced surgical expertise around the world.

Chapter Contents:

• Abbreviations
• Definitions
• 2.1 Introduction
• 2.2 History of tele-mentoring
• 2.3 Applications of tele-mentoring systems
• 2.3.1 Videoconferencing techniques
• 2.3.2 Wearable technology
• 2.3.3 Robotic tele-mentoring platforms
• 2.3.4 Augmented reality
• 2.4 Challenges
• 2.5 Limitations
• 2.6 Conclusion and future directions
• References

Inspec keywords: telemedicine; surgery

Other keywords: surgical procedures; surgical telementoring; telemedicine

Subjects: Patient care and treatment; Biology and medical computing; Patient care and treatment