Fiji will soon have facilities to directly connect patients in Fiji with doctors in India – providing real time diagnosis.

The tele-medicine clinic is being set up by the Fiji National University and Apollo Hospitals from India.

The Fiji National University has been using the tele-medicine clinic for its staff for a year now.

Apollo Hospital Managing Director Sangita Konda says they’ll also train FNU medical students on the use of the new technology.

“We will be collaborating with the medical college of the FNU sharing content capability and the e-learning platform from the Apollo School of medicine. we will enable some of the latest advances in teaching and learning including integrated medicine to be facilitated in Fiji’’.

Tele-medicine uses video conferencing and medical data to make a patient and the doctor feel like they are sitting in the same room even though they are thousands of miles apart.

Severe cases diagnosed at the telemedicine clinic will be referred to India for treatment, while minor cases will be treated locally.

The clinic based in Suva is expected to be open to the public in 8 months time and will be available to all Fijians at a minimal cost.