A study published in the journal Stroke and conducted by the Mayo Clinic was the first to test the effectiveness of smartphone-based tele-radiology applications in a tele-health network. It looked at tasks such as viewing brain scans and other medical images on smartphones, which may help physicians and radiologists assess stroke patients.
“Mobile devices, and the healthcare apps that run on them, have the potential to greatly enhance patient-provider relationships by allowing physicians to be more engaged and efficient during the patient encounter,” said Jonathon Dreyer, director of Mobile Solutions Marketing at Nuance Healthcare. “Doctors want to use technology that they’re familiar with in their everyday lives. They want technology that screams simplicity.”
Consumer increases in the use of smartphones has been paralleled by physicians adoption of the technology. More than half of physicians use a smartphone for work purposes, according to a study by the IT trade group CompTIA.
Furthermore, of the physicians who already use smartphones, 38% use medical software applications daily, a number that was expected to increase to 50% this year.
But while mobile health technology has the potential to improve healthcare quality, reduce costs, and increase patient centeredness, concerns are increasing over security risks to health data, especially now that wireless medical devices are connected to medical IT networks. And since a significant percentage of healthcare data breaches involve the loss or theft of mobile devices, the government is proposing a Meaningful Use rule which calls for greater consideration of data encryption, especially for ambulatory and inpatient EHRs.
“For healthcare, the need for security and operating system isolation is huge because of patient security and HIPPA,” adds Roger Ordman, director of product marketing for Red Bend, a mobile software solution.
Along with issues about security, new connectedness can pose challenges for medical professionals. According to a study in the Journal of Medical Internet Research, physicians are interrupted nearly five times an hour by phone calls, emails and face-to-face interactions. Other healthcare experts have raised concern that smartphones, with their emails, Tweets, text messages, and Facebook messages, could be an additional distraction.
While the role of smartphones continues to evolve, many believe they are a win-win technology. The U.S. can save more than $23 billion – translating to $2,000 to $3,000 per patient –by using mobile health solutions, according Frances Dare, senior executive with Accenture’s mobility business focused on the healthcare industry. And that’s a call that’s hard to refuse.
