Boston and Yerevan: A Longstanding Connection

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Emergency Scientific Medical Center in Yerevan, Armenia and Boston University Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts have been making good use of videoconferencing capabilities for years; the partnership's first such conference on laparoscopic surgery was attended by the Armenian Minister of Health in March 1995. At the time, Boston University School of Medicine dean Aram Chobanian said the use of videoconferencing was particularly important because partner travel had been curtailed during the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

While travel to and from Armenia is now unrestricted, partners continue to meet regularly via videoconference. During one recent session, ermergency medical services (EMS) personnel viewed a videotape of a 1993 partnership disaster drill in order to assess the progress they had made over the years. Still images of the video were captured to illustrate what EMS teams were doing right and wrong.

"Learners remember 10 percent of what is read, 20 percent of what is heard, but 80 percent of what is heard, seen and done. So, videoconferencing can provide an active learning environment," noted Dominic Screnci, EdD, director of the Educational Media Center at the Boston University School of Medicine.

Anahit Yuzbashian, information coordinator at Emergency Scientific Medical Center, added: "We have found that the more people you can inform, the more effect you will have. That has been the driving force behind our videoconferencing program."

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