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The development and proliferation of new information and communication technologies has generated some profound claims about the erasure of place. Whilst these claims have continued political and policy resonance, they are increasingly challenged in sociological debate, which emphasizes the persistence of the local. Following this lead, our article explores relations between technology and place. We develop our understanding through engagement with Science and Technology Studies, Actor Network Theory and geographical conceptualizations of place. Our argument is worked through a new empirical study of telemedicine, where new technologies are applied precisely to overcome place. Our analysis is that, on the contrary, empirical outcomes are legible only through the lens of place. This has important policy implications and broader implications for thinking about technology in contemporary debates about globalization.

Til tross for betydelige statlige investeringer over flere år, er ikke telemedisin en etablert behandlingsform i norsk helsevesen. Lav utbredelse forklares ofte med at leger og andre helseprofesjonelle fungerer som portvakter. Etter vår mening er det behov for å heve blikket og supplere forklaringene på individnivå. I denne artikkelen presenterer vi en empirisk analyse inspirert av Bourdieus maktperspektiv. Vi har brukt intervju, observasjons og dokumentmateriale fra to empiriske case, teleslag og teledermatologi. I begge casene var legene positive til bruk av telemedisin, men løsningene ble lite brukt. Analysen får frem hvordan telemedisin er mer enn nye verktøy for klinkerne, og faktisk trigger diskusjoner om selve kjernen i helsefeltets autonomi; spørsmålet om hva som er den riktige behandling. Vi konkluderer med at mottagelsen av telemedisin i klinisk praksis må forstås i lys av pågående maktkamper i helsefeltet, mellom statlige styringsinteresser på den ene siden og profesjonell autonomi på den andre.Telemedicine; power disruptions in health careAlthough the development of telemedicine has been a priority in Norwegian public health care for over 20 years, only a limited number of applications have been established as routine services. Dominant explanations of slow diffusion points to clinicians and their role as gatekeepers. We argue there is a need to look beyond the ubiquitous accounts of individual influences, and include power structures in the analysis of telemedicine diffusion. In this paper, we present an empirical analysis inspired by Bourdieu's conceptual framework. The data consist of interviews, observations, and public- and project documents from two case studies; telestroke and teledermatology. In both cases, the clinicians were positive and involved in the implementation of telemedicine. Nevertheless, the services were not developed into routine practice; in fact, they were rarely used. Telemedicine touches upon the core value of health care activity: how to define the best patient treatment. The paper argues telemedicine might disrupt and be disrupted by existing power struggles in the health care sector. We conclude that slow diffusion of telemedicine should be understood in light of ongoing negotiations and power struggles between state regulatory powers on the one hand and health professional autonomy on the other.