This is the UK's first academic institution devoted to research and teaching in telemedicine and telecare.  The Institute was established in December 1994 at The Queen's University of Belfast.

Current research includes the following projects:

• Pilot trial of remote fetal ultrasound scanning

• Clinical trial of an ISDN 30 (2 Mbit/s) digital link for combined real-time ultrasound and videoconferencing between the maternity unit in a peripheral hospital on the Isle of Wight and the national centre for fetal medicine at Queen Charlotte's Hospital in West London (Fisk NM et al, Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare 38-44, 1, 1995)

• Evaluation of telemedicine to support a minor treatment centre

• Evaluation of a low cost videoconferencing technology used to provide medical advice from a major teaching hospital in Belfast to nurse practitioners running a minor treatment service in central London (Darkins A et al, Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare 93-99, 2, 1996)

• UK Multicentre Teledermatology Trial: a multicentre trial with arms in Northern Ireland, England and New Zealand (Loane MA et al, Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare 83-88, 3, 1997)