Ukraine has all up-to-date telecommunication technologies. But high quality servecies are not available in the agricultural regions and in the country sides. Modern technologies like fiber optic, ISDN etc still very expensive. Cost of Internet decreases every year. There are about 2 million PCs in Ukraine (1.300 million in 2002). Telephone lines in use 11,0 million (2003). Mobile phones: about 7.0 million (4 main operators, GSM, NMT); GPRS-Internet is available from 2003. Internet service providers: total - 300, but 80% of the market belongs to 10 bigest providers. Internet users: 3,8 million (about 8% of population). There are 109.000 web-sites in .ua zone. The annual gain of quantity of www-sites makes 22%.

LEGISLATION

There are a few laws, which adjust using of information system in health care in Ukraine - «About Information», «About Protection Information in Automatic System», «About Electronic Digital Signature», «About Development of Ukrainian Part of Internet» etc. The main goals of this laws are:
- preservation of medical information;
- preservation patients’ rights to privacy;
- increasing of quality of medical care;
- confidentiality of any medical information system.
There are a few scientific works in field of legalisation and ethical problems of telemedicine.

IMPLEMENTED TELEMEDICINE SERVICES

First telemedical work-outs appeared in our country in 1970ies. It was telemetry of physiological parameters for coal-miners. A few first teleconsultations in telepathology were carried out in 1995. Today telemedicine is basically developed as teleconsultations and distant education. In 2000 in Donetsk R&D Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedics was founded first in Ukraine Department of Informatics and Telemedicine. Since 2000 we were constantly carried out teleconsultations in trauma, neurosrgery, orthopedics, oncology, pediatrics, rheumatology, obstetrics, dermatology etc. We created program for local implementation of telemedicine, also we study technical, economical, ethical problems of telemedicine. Nowdays we work under national program of telemedicine improvement.
Main achievements of ukrainian telemedicine:
- theoretical base of the telemedicine is generalized (ukrainian glossary, prototypes of telemedical systems, indicies for teleconsultations etc.);
- 70-100 teleconsultations carry out per every year (trauma, neurosrgery, orthopedics, oncology, pediatrics, rheumatology, obstetrics, dermatology);
- created Internet-based system for distant education (trauma surgery) "TeleTrama"; a few telelectures for medical students carried out every year;
- in 2002-2003 3 books and 1 telemedical manual was published;
- in 2003 was founded "Ukrainian Journal of Telemedicine and Medical Telematics" (ISSN  1728-936X, on-line ISSN 1811-1688);
- scientific work "Using of teleconsultations in treatment of polytrauma" was done, analyzed the effectiveness of the telemedicine for traumatology and orthopedics.
- a few web-sites (including main information resource "Telemedicine in Ukraine" www.telemed.org.ua), Internet-applications and medical softwares were developed
- established parthnerships with telemedical organisations, centers and persons from 33 countries.

MAIN COMPANIES AND INSTITUTIONS DEALING WITH TELEMEDICINE

At that time there is no general telemedical network in Ukraine. A few powerful organisation provide telemedical service in their regions.
Scientific researches, clinical teleconsultations and distant education:
- Department of Informatics and Telemedicine of Donetsk R&D Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedics;
- Kiev National Medical University.
Clinical teleconsultations:
- Kiev R&D Institute of Neurosurgery;
- Donetsk Dermatovenerologic Hospital 1;
- Lutsk Regional Clinical Hospital.
Medical telemetry:
- Donetsk Regional Center for Protection of Motherhood and Childhood;
- Kharkiv City Hospital.
Distant education:
- Thernopil State Medical Academy;
- Donetsk State Medical University;
- Dnepropetrivsk State Medical Academy.
In 2004 was began creation of the telemedical network of Donetsk Region. This network should become the prototype for all country.

PLANS AND ORGANISATIONS FOR TELEMEDICINE IMPLEMENTATION
Main directions of development of ukrainian telemedicine:
- creation of regionals and national programs of telemedicine improvement;
- using of teleconsultations in treatment of different serious pathology (polytrauma, heart diseases, oncology, tuberculosis, AIDS etc);
- implementation of distant education;
- stuff education for telemedical work stations;
- improvment telemedicine in rural areas;
- scientific researches in clinical teleconsultations, special equipment, legal, ethical and deonthological problems of telemedicine and health informatics, testing different equipment for telemedical work stations.

Interview with dr.Anton Vladzymyrskyy, Head of Informatics and Telemedicine dep., Regional Telemedicine Director, deputy-editor of "Ukrainian Journal of Telemedicine and Medical Telematics"