Of late the power of mobile technology, especially in healthcare has gained increased attention. Research and development have picked up momentum to bring about innovative ways to monitor and care for patients by large.
The Story so far
Pressures coming from Center for Medicare Services in the form of value based purchasing and the reimbursement provisions in the meaningful use of electronic medical records (EMRs) have spurred the need for more innovations in mobile technology. Started as a novel idea, usage of iPads in healthcare has become a reality today. Many market research firms have estimated that over 80 per cent of physicians would start using smart phones and tablets by 2012. An interview by the Spyglass Consulting Group with doctors who use mobile devices has revealed that 70% of them own iPads. Physicians now agree that mobile health practices are a better way for providing improved patient care. Before iPads, iPhones were in use for clinical purposes starting from voice recording to clinical data entry. Therefore, when Apple had released the iPad two years ago, it was easily accepted by doctors and other care-providers. Soon, the device has become popular in medical academics too.
Future Prospects:
About a fortnight ago, Apple had introduced a new iPad to the media in San Francisco. It was released in the market a few days later. The new iPad has several features that appeal to the medical community. Physicians will have an improved graphics useful for reviewing images. The high resolution ‘retina display’ will give radiologists a better view of images on a mobile device. Experts are of the opinion that the improved medical imaging features and graphic capabilities would encourage hospitals, physicians and radiologists to adopt it. The major feature of the announcement made by Apple on that day is the introduction of voice dictation. This enables recording of patient notes and entering data into EMRs. Telemedicine and m-health would find numerous applications with high speed internet combined with the increased graphics capability and camera resolution. This third-generation model with an improved HD screen would set the stage for several clinical uses, argue some experts.
However, iPad suffers from lack of innovation when it comes to clinical usage. Complexities involved in adapting the EHR functionality to the small touch screen is a major cause for the same, opines Gregg Malkary, managing director of Spyglass Consulting Group. “Vendors are also not expected to go into production soon as it involves redesigning of their applications with a focus on patient-centric care,” he was quoted in one of the articles in InformationWeek.
Continued progress of mobile technology demands for new functionality so that physicians get the tools they need for better patient care. Vendors within the arena of electronic health records also feel the pressure from their clients who want more functionality from mobile apps on real time basis. There are reports showing that both Epic and All scripts are experimenting with iPad-native EHRs. iPads might not be the ultimate winner but it is a strong contender for the top place. Therefore, appreciating its potential would be in the best interests of Healthcare Industry by large.
The Apple app store is already buzzing with millions of apps meant for different usage relevance for the phones and iPads. One such app is Orra Health which seeks to combine a digital recorder, medical records storage facility and a secure web interface backed by superior analytics in order to provide absolute convenience with maximum security.
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