1. Telemedicine
at the Minnesota
State Fair
Zoi Hills, Project Manager,
Great Plains Telehealth Resource &
Assistance Center

2. Background
 Minnesota State Fair: >1.5 million attend
 Great Plains Telehealth Resource & Assistance
Center booth in U of M building
 500+ experience telemedicine
 5000+ observe telehealth in action
 Telehealth fair booth activities:
Teledermatology
Pulmonary function testing
Stroke screening
 Future Telehealth fair booth activity:
Cardiology

3. Preparations & Methods
Coordinate U of M and other partners
Recruitment & Scheduling
 Telemedicine physicians
 Staff volunteers
Gather supplies
Set ethernet connection through U of M gigabit network
 Process…
 Staff volunteer: explain telehealth to crowd, track
number of observers, hands out materials, answer
questions, crowd control
 Recruit “patients”
 2-4 minutes per patient consult:

5. Results
 576 fair goers screened
87% (n=503) by dermatologists
13% (n=73) by pulmonologists
 18, two-hour telemedicine sessions
27 screenings per hour, on average
 200 people referred for further evaluation –
>33% of screened
skin cancer lesions (n=34)
pre-malignant lesions (n=70)
abnormal spirometry readings (n=17)
significant airflow obstruction (n=11)
PFT results suggestive of restrictive process (n=6)
benign lesions / conditions warranting further evaluation (n=62)

6. CONCLUSION
Great Plains Telehealth Resource & Assistance
Center demonstration…
…provides valuable public service
…offers effective means of screening for disease
…encourages essential medical follow-up
…educates about the merits of telehealth
…saves lives…
Patient testimonial:
“Your doctor saw me last week and found a suspicious
mole on my chest. I followed up with my doctor who
removed it because it was cancer.
Thank you for saving my life!”

7. QUESTIONS?
Contact us at 888-239-7092
Visit us at www.gptrac.org