Patent issues on telemedicine in eHealth

This paper intends to specifically verify what patent issues may be encountered in the telemedicine, using 2007 International Property Rights Index (IPRI) which is the first international comparative study that measures the significance of both physical and intellectual property rights and their protection for economic well-being. Where ldquotelemedicinerdquo is defined as ldquo the use of electronic information and communication technologies to provide and support health care when distance separates the participantsrdquo, the technologies are concerned, when discussing the ldquotelemedicinerdquo, and we cannot avoid thinking about ldquopatentrdquo that serves to protect the ldquotechnologiesrdquo as rights. This patent issues acts as a hindrance factor against spreading and promoting the telemedicine. To solve this hindrance factor, i.e. the patent issues, and for the purpose of spreading and promoting the telemedicine so that the benefit of medicine may reach everybody, including the people living in the developing countries, to improve the health of people all over the world, it seems extremely important to recognize the presence of ldquopatent issuesrdquo in the field of ldquotelemedicinerdquo.