For an industry that has tried to avoid technology, healthcare is embracing the iPad. Here's a look at how it's being used today and the promise it holds for tomorrow.
The 2010 release of the Apple iPad opened many eyes in the healthcare industry. For years, physicians and caregivers shied away from incorporating information technology into patient interactions because laptops and computers on wheels (affectionately known as COWs) were so cumbersome. A 10-inch tablet, though, made it easy to access patient records and medical images, look up drug information, schedule appointments and even show patients educational videos at the bedside. (It helps that many doctors bought iPads for personal use.) The new 8-inch iPad mini, which better fits in one hand, is further poised to convince reluctant healthcare professionals to embrace IT. Here are 12 examples of iPad use in the healthcare industry today—and a look at how it may be used tomorrow.
The iPad Eases Home Health Initiatives
“Traditional” telemedicine has required desktop computers, telecommunications equipment and high-speed Internet, none of which are conducive to helping patients connect to physicians from their own home. The iPad, with its built-in camera and optional 3G, can bring home health to the masses. It’s not just the urban elite, either. In Australia’s sparsely populated Northern Territory, for example, healthcare workers brings iPads on house calls; this process improves the care cycle (as patients don’t miss appointments) and data integrity (it’s only documented once). In addition, the new iPad’s support for Bluetooth 4.0 means health workers can use the tablet to monitor data coming from medical monitoring devices; they don’t have to enter data, and patients can remain home.
The iPad Makes Medical Software More Accessible
Much medical software is built on old code (the MUMPS programming language dates back to the late 1960s) that runs on old operating systems (Windows XP is not uncommon). Users need a keyboard, a mouse and substantial training to just get started, while IT departments must maintain legacy systems to support these clunky apps. The iPad’s mobility and touch screen, on the other hand, means that today’s medical software developers have no choice but to create intuitive applications that work on the go. This is good news: a slick user interface will engage physicians as well as patients, who will need an easy way to track weight, blood pressure and other vital signs as they age.
The iPad Provides Digital Versions of Academic Medical Journals
The growth of digital publishing, combined with the growing number of physicians and medical students with iPads in their hands, has motivated many medical journals to create iPad apps that put digital editions in subscribers’ hands. (iMedicalApps maintains a list.) In addition to current articles, the apps typically include multimedia content, back issues and the ability to share articles. Sure, digital magazines are everywhere, but in an industry that uses research from all corners of the globe to drive advancements in diagnosing, treating and curing disease, readily available information is a huge step forward.
The iPad Complements Speech Therapy
For years, physical props such as dolls, balls and flashcards were mainstays of speech therapy sessions with children. Now, speech pathologists are using the iPad—and not just because kids think the tablet is cooler than a pack of crayons. There are numerous apps that target a variety of language skills, let pathologists record and save a child’s work and make quick assessments. Many apps offer free or “light” versions, too, so users can try them out before making a purchase. Finally, the availability of the apps means that parents can reinforce the pathologists’ lessons at home.
The iPad Gives Healthcare CIOs Headaches
The iPad’s future in healthcare is bright, but it does brings challenges. Last year, Panasonic and BizTech Reports surveyed healthcare IT leaders and found that two-thirds deem the iPad (and other tablets) a governance challenge. Issues include incompatibility with legacy applications, concerns about device durability and sanitization, technical support and the impact on wireless network infrastructure. Security and risk management remain the biggest obstacles, though, largely because physicians bring their own device, use it outside the purview of traditional IT operations and increase the risk of a healthcare data breach. Specific security shortcomings—identity and access management, data security, remote access to and management of iPads and risk of theft—particularly trouble healthcare CIOs.
Case Study: iPad Security: How a Hospital Group Treated Trouble
