The TeleSCoPE Code. Quality standards for telehealth practice across Europe

The TeleSCoPE project was inspired by COM (2008) 689 Action of the EC in order to address the increasing widespread use of telehealth and provide a means of raising trust and acceptance among users. The implementation of a EU Code of Practice for Telehealth Services was not only the main objective of TeleSCoPE, but also represented a first milestone in a mainstreaming process by which such services could be accredited. Such accreditation would help ensure that telehealth services across the EU achieved an appropriate quality benchmark. This paper will illustrate the main steps involved in the process leading to the Code's adoption. This included, among others, these relevant factors: technology solutions, confidence from users, quality standards analysis, consultation stage, response from providers, draft code versions and update with guidelines on offered services. The Code can have a positive impact on start-up service initiatives as well as considerable benefits on involved users. In fact, telehealth services based on a common quality standard can help cost reductions, procedure and standardisation patterns, protocols and interoperability requirements.