ihealthbook

I’m not really an Apple fan, but I’m always open to innovations in healthcare. Last week was centered around iPad both in the news and the blogosphere as more and more bloggers started to describe its potential role in healthcare. It’s obvious now that healthcare will go through some major changes in the next few years due to EMRs (electronic medical records) and PHRs (personal health records). Though Boston has already gone through this.

Tablet solutions have a clear future (pdf) but as Apple tablet representatives were spotted at Los Angeles’ Cedars-Sinai Medical Center a few weeks ago, it seems iPad might have a shot in healthcare as well. Let’s see what can happen.

Possible cons from the healthcare aspect:

No camera: it means it cannot be used in telemedicine

No flash: several medical websites use Flash

No mouse support: it’s not a disadvantage if there won’t be click-heavy applications

Battery life: It is somewhere around 10 hours which is enough for a doctor working on the hospital but what happens when the iPad gets handed off to the next person? Dying battery can be swapped out for a fresh one in other tablet solutions. Here there won’t be enough time to re-charge iPads.

It’s too big to fit into a doctor’s pocket.

iPad is not ruggedized while other healthcare tablets are drop resistant from about a meter.

No Multi-tasking: it makes it impossible to write a patient report while consulting with a collegue (there are hundreds of examples why multi-tasking is crucial)

No barcode scanner: it’s used for checking and uploading drugs, among others.

Such a device should be water-proof and easily disinfected. iPad wasn’t designed for this.

The iPad has a capacitive touch screen on which gloves won’t work.

Possible pros:

If there is a company that can get the best out of such a device, that is Apple.

Probably there will be more and more medical applications designed exclusively for iPad just like there are so many medical apps for iPhone.

It’s cheaper than other healthcare tablets.

It was designed to be as user-friendly as possible (a nice advantage of Apple products) so elderly people will also be able to learn to use it easily.

One scenario might be having an iPad in the hospital as the central database where doctors can upload the information from the iPhones.

If I miss anything, please let me know so I can improve the list.

I think iPad has the potential to become the No.1 healthcare tablet, but it has to go through plenty of changes and innovations in order to become a serious competitor in this race.

Resources:

MobileHealthNews

Kevin, MD one and two

Read Write Web

Lucien Engelen

Tablet PCs – The Best Thing Since Sliced Bread -This Knowledge Has Been Valued by a Very Small Group – Participants and Users – Lesson Learned, Be A Tablet PC Goober No Matter What Everyone Else Thinks!

Tablet PCs – The Best Thing Since Sliced Bread -This Knowledge Has Been Valued by a Very Small Group – Participants and Users – Lesson Learned, Be A Tablet PC Goober No Matter What Everyone Else Thinks!

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Pictures: The iPad Being Manhandled

Pictures: The iPad Being Manhandled: "

Okay, we’ve all seen the iPad now. We’ve read all about it. We’ve seen video of it in action. But how is it to actually hold? I took a bunch of pictures of people playing with it in the demo pit today after Apple’s event. The consensus amongst those I talked to? It’s actually quite comfortable.

I played with one myself for a bit and have to agree. While it’s nowhere near as light as a Kindle, it feels much more solid and because it’s significantly larger, is easier to hold with two hands. But it’s also light enough that holding it with one hand is not a burden. And it’s extremely thin. Plus, unlike the Kindle, you can easily swap between portrait and landscape positions.

As for finger smudges, that’s another story. The Apple reps were quick to wipe it off after each demo as it was quite greasy after each hands-on. But the screen is bright enough that you don’t really notice it except around the black edges.

Note the pictures below of it next to the Kindle, as well as it next to an iPhone and an old school iPod.