Medicine has migrated in the last century from home-based care to centralized concentrations of technology in medical centers. NASA has played a leading role in the development of much of this technology, including telemetry, telemedicine and material science. As we approach the next century of medical progress, NASA anticipates missions of vastly greater length and distance from earth. Medical technology which has been so fixed to medical centers must be liberated to accompany our astronauts wherever the mission calls them. The demand for portable technology and telecommunications to embrace distant sites will allow more and more medical care to be delivered away from hospitals and at remote facilities throughout the planet. Again the needs of our space program will fuel a revolution in health care.

The Medical Informatics and Technology Applications Consortium (MITAC) was established to explore the technologies that will be required to support these kinds of missions. MITAC is a unique NASA Research Partnership Center (RPC), established to develop, evaluate, and promote information and medical technologies for space flight and ground applications. The basic premise of a RPC is to leverage technology through partnerships with industrial affiliates and other government agencies to benefit both human space flight and the commercial sector.

MITAC is a consortium comprised of partners from government, academic institutions and industry that have a commercial interest in products and technology related to telemedicine, medical informatics and medical technology.