By setting up a teleconsultation and telemedicine unit to complement RESAMONT, the transnational physical consultation network already established under a previous project, the SOS MAM project is making it possible to modernise mountain medicine and make its services available to more people.
SOS MAM – Telemedicine for a mountain environment
- 25 January 2016
SOS MAM, a remote medical advice service for all travellers and expedition participants in remote areas with no healthcare facilities
Treating illnesses that are specific to the mountain environment (caused by exposure to the cold, altitude and travel) requires specific expertise that few European centres possess. IFREMMONT (France) and GRIMM (Switzerland) are the right bodies for this job, since they bring together a network of doctors and paramedics with skills in this field. The aim of the SOS MAM project is to complement the services offered by the existing physical consultation network by adding remote services, so that more requests may be handled remotely in this mountainous region, where the constraints of geography and climate impede the mobility of local residents.
A shared service which is modern, fast and effective
There are many benefits to setting up a new teleconsultation and telemedicine unit: telemedicine applications can be tested and rolled out in the mountains; patients can be treated remotely; health professionals can be better trained in mountain medicine so that they can provide care far from any medical centre; first aid in the mountains can be improved by making remote medical assistance staffed by expert doctors available to rescuers; and local people and visitors taking part in mountain sports can be better informed about the risks they face in this hostile environment and what they can do to reduce these risks.
While the physical consultation network meant that only those who could visit the centres could get the care they needed, the SOS MAM centre makes it possible to respond to the growing number of remote requests (by telephone or internet) from doctors, residents and travel professionals. These requests are received from across the region and sometimes even from other parts of Europe.
The SOS MAM centre is run from France and Switzerland by a team of Swiss and French experts, which enables them to pool their skills and encourages synergies. Moreover, two part-time posts in France and one full-time post in Switzerland will be created during the implementation phase of the project.
Total investment and EU funding
Total investment in the “SOS MAM” project has been EUR 464 133. The European Regional Development Fund’s contribution is EUR 240 600 under the “INTERREG IVA France-Switzerland Operational Programme” for the 2007-2013 programming period.