Objectives Telemedicine can compensate for the lack of health care specialists in response to protracted humanitarian crises. We sought to assess the usability of a teleclinical microbiology (TCM) program to provide diagnostic services in a hard-to-reach region of Syria. Methods A semimobile station was equipped with conventional micrograph and macrograph digital imaging systems. An electronic platform (Telemicrobiology in Humanitarian Crises, TmHC) was created to facilitate sharing, interpreting, and storing the results. A pilot study was conducted to identify the bacterial species and antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of 74 urinary clinical isolates. An experience survey was conducted to capture the feedback of 8 participants in the program. Results The TmHC platform (https://sdh.ngo/tmhc/) enabled systematic transmission of the laboratory records and co-interpretation of the results. The isolates were identified as Escherichia coli (n = 61), Klebsiella pneumoniae (n = 12), and Proteus mirabilis(n = 1). All the isolates were multidrug resistant. The performance of our TCM module was rated 4 (satisfying) and 5 (very satisfying) by 6 and 2 users, respectively. Data security of and cost-effectiveness were the main perceived concerns. Conclusions Although we encountered several context-related obstacles, our TCM program managed to reach a highly vulnerable population of 4 million people confined in the northwest region of Syria.

中文翻译：

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远程临床微生物学

目标 远程医疗可以弥补医疗保健专家的不足，以应对长期的人道主义危机。我们试图评估远程临床微生物学 (TCM) 项目在叙利亚偏远地区提供诊断服务的可用性。方法半移动站配备了传统的显微和宏观数字成像系统。创建了一个电子平台（人道主义危机中的远程微生物学，TmHC）以促进共享、解释和存储结果。进行了一项初步研究，以确定 74 种泌尿临床分离株的细菌种类和抗菌药物敏感性模式。我们进行了一项体验调查，以收集 8 名计划参与者的反馈。结果 TmHC 平台 (https://sdh.ngo/tmhc/) 实现了实验室记录的系统传输和结果的共同解释。分离株被鉴定为大肠杆菌 (n = 61)、肺炎克雷伯菌 (n = 12) 和奇异变形杆菌 (n = 1)。所有分离株均具有多重耐药性。我们的 TCM 模块的性能分别被 6 名和 2 名用户评为 4（满意）和 5（非常满意）。数据安全和成本效益是主要的关注点。结论 虽然我们遇到了一些与具体情况相关的障碍，但我们的中医项目成功地覆盖了叙利亚西北部地区 400 万人的高度弱势群体。