General Electric and Intel are planning to jointly spend approximately $250 million over the next five years for research and the development of health technologies in order for doctors to remotely monitor, diagnose and consult with patients in assisted living facilities and at home.  This article from The New York Times.

Both companies have fledgling offerings in the field of telehealth, as it is known, and home health monitoring. Intel has just introduced a special-purpose computer with two-way video capability, which is linked over the Internet to a doctor, nurse or physician assistant, called Intel Health Guide.

Under the partnership, General Electric, whose $17 billion-a-year health care business ranges from medical imaging equipment to electronic health records, agreed to distribute Intel’s computer system through its worldwide sales force.

For the last few years G.E. has built a small business unit, GE QuietCare, which uses motion sensors to monitor older patients, mostly in communities for the elderly, so caregivers can be alerted to unusual patterns of activity, or inactivity, that might signal a health problem or emergency.

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