“Many illnesses defy diagnosis and ingenious specialists are few and far between,” says Sean Belanger, CEO of CSDVRS, a national video relay services provider for the deaf and hard-of-hearing. “Which is why recent technological advances in video conferencing are so exciting. Telemedicine is not just about more convenient meetings – it’s about saving lives.”

Belanger’s corporation launched Stratus Video (www.stratusvideo.com) last year to focus on honing that technology. His company provides video-relayed deaf interpreting services to government agencies and businesses across the country, including the Social Security Administration, Boeing Corp. and Wal-Mart.

“On-demand, high-definition mobile video conferencing solves life-or-death problems, like the hospital patient in Georgia who needs to be seen by the specialist at the Mayo Clinic – fast,” Belanger says. "To that end, we support video technology today for American Sign Language and Spanish, and provide language interpretation access for more than 180 spoken languages, all on a mobile device."

Telemedicine is also used to bring doctors to far-flung rural communities; save travel time and money on consultations and team problem-solving; and even to have more experienced medical professionals offering guidance and instruction during procedures.