Kodak to launch first telehealth product

March 1, 2000

Kodak to launch first telehealth productEastman Kodak is making its first foray into the telemedicine market with the LifeView Care Station, a home-health interactive monitoring device that permits full audio and video communication over

Kodak to launch first telehealth product

Eastman Kodak is making its first foray into the telemedicine market with the LifeView Care Station, a home-health interactive monitoring device that permits full audio and video communication over standard phone lines.

Kodaks Health Imaging Division, based in Rochester, NY, gained FDA clearance for its LifeView system last month and plans to launch it commercially by the third quarter, according to Dawn Beck, director of public relations for health imaging at Kodak. The system will be marketed to home health providers who offer telehealth services.

We have been saying for a year or more that we were going to expand beyond our traditional diagnostic imaging market, and this is our first step toward that, Beck said.

The LifeView system is intended to be part of a comprehensive care plan for homebound patients that includes both in-person and electronic checkups. The system operates much like a video telephone, with a digital camera, telephone handset, and view screen, but also features a blood pressure cuff, stethoscope, and digital thermometer. An online visit begins when the nurse calls the patient; clinical data and images are collected by the patient station and transmitted to the healthcare provider in real-time, then dated and stored as a documentation of the visit.