SearchPublisher and Institutes
You are here: Home :: Area NEM :: Medical science :: Human medicine
M. Aanestad, B. Edwin, R. Mrvik
Medical Image Quality as a Socio-technical Phenomenon
Keywords: Laparoscopy, surgery, Telemedicine, image quality, video quality
OBJECTIVES: The study aims to interpret image quality in laparoscopic surgery not only as a technical parameter but also as the result of the situation of use. METHODS: Observational studies of laparoscopy in use, semi-structured and informal interviews with laparoscopists. RESULTS: When medical images are digitized to exploit novel technical possibilities, image quality becomes a paramount issue. Image quality is often discussed exclusively in technical terms, but the socio-technical study of image quality in surgical telemedicine presented in this paper showed that it is definitely more than a purely technical parameter. CONCLUSIONS: While the resulting quality of the image was significantly shaped by the persons involved, the concept of quality itself was also relative and changing with the situation of use. A given technology does not determine image quality. Rather than focusing only on the technical quality, the attention of designers and decision makers should also be directed to the socio-technical network surrounding the image and its use.
Methods of Information in Medicine, Schattauer
Print ISSN: 0026-1270
Volume: 42, 01/2003
Pages: 302 - 306