Earlier this month, we here at WoundRounds posted a blog titled the “7 Smartphone Apps for Diagnostic and Information Retrieval Needs.” In it, we discussed the benefits that physicians can find when taking advantage of new mobile technology. And although a recent study conducted by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society supports that idea, the study also revealed that there are other uses for mobile technology that may succeed data lookup. Those uses are especially notable when the lens is focused on collaborative care.
In the publication titled, “The Promise of Mobile Technology: Enabling Collaborative Care, Fulfilling Healthcare Reform,” published in response to the Intel Healthcare Innovation Summit 2012, mobile’s advantages in health care settings went beyond data retrieval. Tracking patients, managing medication and monitoring blood sugar levels are just a few of those benefits.
“NYeC, which oversees New York’s statewide health information exchange, is conducting a pilot in which clinicians can look up information such as medication lists in electronic records when patients present to the emergency department (ED),” the editors explained. “As an added value, VNSNY receives an alert when one of its patients presents, which results in a follow-up to determine if the patient was admitted or sent home. VNSNY can track patients more efficiently and reschedule visits when patients are in the hospital.”
Furthermore, it was revealed that mobile devices can step in to help nurses manage patient medication lists, which for some can include up to two dozen different medications. The mobile systems can determine which medications adversely interact with one another and can then be put together to create a regimen for patients to follow.
For teenage diabetics, mobile technology has made monitoring their condition all the more easy. By tracking metrics such as blood sugar levels on their devices and by leveraging gaming applications to help educate themselves, the program has been considered a big success.
So although there are still some advances to be made, such as relaying information about the side effects of new drugs, mobile technology is truly changing the way health care professionals work.
