International Pediatric Chat Service Connects L'viv and Detroit

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Twenty-four hours a day, pediatricians and pediatrics nurses from around the world can log on to the International Pediatric Chat (IPC) website (http://www.pedschat.org) and confer with colleagues about topics such as Down Syndrome, breastfeeding and juvenile diabetes. For partners at L'viv Oblast Clinical Hospital (LOCH) in Ukraine and at Henry Ford Health System in Detroit, Michigan, the site's Internet Relay Chat (IRC) server has proved to be an invaluable communication tool.

"We have attended several conferences on-line, but also use this server quite often for chatting and consulting with our partners from Detroit," said Andrew Tooziak, MD, information coordinator at LOCH. "Actually, we taught our US partners how to install the software for chatting, how to connect to the IPC IRC server, and how to use it."

Recently, Sudhakar Ezhuthachan, MD, a neonatologist at Henry Ford Hospital, moderated an on-line IPC conference addressing jaundice in newborns. L'viv partners participated in the discussion, which broached questions like: What are the factors that cause increased jaundice in a neonate?; and What percentage of infants who have unexplained jaundice are breast-fed?

"I can just say that everyone can benefit from these conferences and chatting," said Tooziak. "I encourage all pediatricians who have access to the Internet to register in IPC and take part in the conferences."

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