Medical Smartphones

"txt 4 pharma" virtual conference

2012-05-23T23:24:00.002-04:00

Save the date for MM&M's txt4pharma virtual event on Thursday, July 26, 2012!

txt 4 pharma is a virtual conference event in which cutting-edge leaders, thinkers and visionaries in healthcare marketing will discuss and share strategies, observations and insights on mobile health communications. It’s also a forum to foster live, interactive dialogue between delegates, speakers and sponsors.

Learn more and you can register here.

Tummy Trends app for patients with constipation

2012-05-23T21:00:00.001-04:00

Do you treat patients who have constipation or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)? There's an app for that. This one is developed by Takeda Pharmaceuticals.

Patients who suffer from constipation and irritable bowel syndrome may have difficulty recalling or describing their symptoms and behaviors. Now there’s a free app for the iPhone and iPod touch that can help your patients record and track their symptoms, treatments, and behaviors and easily share them with you.

Discreet and user-friendly, Tummy Trends can help patients:

Consistently record symptoms, treatments, and behaviors
View charts and graphs that show data over time
E-mail reports to you on a voluntary basis
Have more information when they talk with you about their condition

Learn more about this app here.

Registration Now Open for the 2012 mHealth Summit

2012-05-16T16:44:00.000-04:00

The 2012 mHealth Summit will deliver keynotes from industry luminaries; nearly 100 sessions including new Healthcare Delivery, mHealth in Hospitals and Global Health tracks; new sponsors, partners and strategic affiliates; expanded exhibit hall showcasing over 400 exhibitors and 4 themed pavilion and the mHIMSS Hospital Mobile Survey results.

Join more than 4,500 leaders from 50 countries and 250 domestic and international media to advance collaboration in the use of wireless technology to improve health outcomes and healthcare delivery in the United States and abroad.

You can register for the 2012 mHealth Summit in D.C. here.

PwC will be releasing a report on mHealth next month

2012-05-10T21:00:00.000-04:00

On 7 June 2012, PwC will release a report about mobile health (mHealth) with analysis from the Economist Intelligence Unit.

This report examines the development of mHealth in ten countries, five developed and five emerging, and the role that various stakeholders — from healthcare payers to physicians and patients — can play in its development. These insights will help us understand its evolution and how it will transform healthcare as we know it today.

By definition, mHealth is the provision of healthcare or health-related information through mobile services or devices outside of traditional care settings. While it is a nascent phenomenon, it nevertheless will have a significant impact on how healthcare can be delivered and accessed.

To learn more and to reserve your copy, click here.

Does Foursquare have application in medicine or health care?

2012-05-09T08:00:00.000-04:00

I'm an avid user of Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. I've been a late adopter of Foursquare but a few weeks ago, I decided to take the plunge and see if I could see whether it made any sense to try Foursquare. I often speak at conferences about social media, so it would only make sense for me to get on Foursquare and use it for a while. I have to admit that I've been pleasantly surprised by some of the things I've seen so far and I think I could make an argument that the medical and health care community could learn quite a bit from this rather simple social media app.

Here's how foursquare is described on their site:

foursquare makes the real world easier to use. We build tools that help you keep up with friends, discover what’s nearby, save money and unlock deals. Whether you’re setting off on a trip around the world, coordinating a night out with friends, or trying to pick out the best dish at your local restaurant, foursquare is the perfect companion.

Now, there are plenty of other apps that provide similar services. For instance, Facebook has the "check in" function. But, most people don't use Facebook to check in to places. On Foursquare, you can view who else is currently checked into a place. This can be both good and bad (it really depends on your comfort level with your personal privacy). When you check in using Foursquare, you're effectively telling the world (even though privacy settings can get adjusted).

Read more »

WLSA 2012 Convergence Summit

2012-05-08T22:51:00.000-04:00

The 2012 Convergence Summit is the Wireless-Life Sciences Alliance (WLSA) annual flagship summit where executive-led forums on healthcare, technology and communication leaders convene to discuss pivotal issues facing the wireless health community and network with companies critical to business advancement.

WLSA Convergence Summit
May 22-24, 2012
San Diego, CA

While many have hosted large wireless and mHealth events with multiple tracks, WLSA is committed to provide value by designing an appropriate-sized agenda to engage the investment banking and venture community, wireless industry leaders, and entrepreneurs who are forging a paradigm shift in health care: making health care simpler through wireless innovations. Yes, there are legislative challenges we face which make our business choices more interesting and we plan to discuss some of these strategies.

Learn more here.

May the 4th be with you... Star Wars Pit Droids is free

2012-05-04T22:59:00.001-04:00

Yes, today is May the 4th. If you are a Star Wars fan, you'll see the similarity and understand that today is "Star Wars Day." To celebrate, they are giving away the Star Wars Pit Droids game for free on iTunes. You can get this for your iOS device (iPhone, iPod touch, iPad).

Industry discussion around mobile health (mHealth) here at #ATA2012

2012-05-01T18:44:00.004-04:00

Here at the American Telemedicine Association (ATA) 2012 annual conference, we are seeing a tremendous amount of technology innovation. Today, I attended the Industry Executive Panel 8: mHealth. How does it fit into the current way healthcare is practiced? Participants included: Qualcomm (Don Jones), Nonin, A&D Medical, and Verizon.

The discussion started with the definition of "mHealth" or "mobile health." So many people refer to this as e-health, wireless health, connected health, etc. Not all mobile health is wireless health. Not all wireless health is mobile. So, we're in a transition period where even the basic terminology around mHealth and telemedicine is evolving.

Some of the newer wireless technologies include things like Near Field Communication (NFC): it's very low power consumption, it's inexpensive, and it requires no pairing. As more medical devices and home monitoring devices incorporate wireless communication technologies, we are seeing a revolution in health data transmission over wireless networks.

During the presentation, Don Jones pulled out an AliveCor iPhone ECG. The panelists agreed that the cloud is going to dominate the mHealth space because of the computing processing power that is available through the cloud. The cloud allows clinicians to leverage analytics and data processing.

Don also used ZocDoc as an example of a mobile service that has dramatically improved the workflow for patients. Given that mobile devices include geocentric services (built-in GPS, Wi-Fi triangulation, etc.), these capabilities are enhancing the delivery of health care.

Insurance companies are adopting mHealth technologies as well. Aetna recently purchased iTriage and patients now have access to emergency room wait times at different hospitals. These are some of the services that are designed to improve patient satisfaction scores. The consumerism model is driving much of the innovation that we are seeing in the mHealth industry.

Read more »

mHealth companies at the Qualcomm Life booth at #ATA2012

2012-04-30T14:54:00.000-04:00

I'm here attending the American Telemedicine Association (ATA) 2012 annual conference and at the Qualcomm Life booth #643 you'll find a variety of innovative mobile health (mHealth) companies demonstrating their products and services.

Some examples include the AliveCor iPhone ECG, Airstrip Technologies, Dexcom, and many others. Some of these products are commercially available and FDA approved for use in the health care setting. Other products are still in development, so you can preview the beta versions of these mHealth solutions right here at ATA.

Qualcomm Life is defining and connecting the wireless health network to improve lives and advance the capabilities of medical devices. Qualcomm Life is focused on device connectivity and data management and empowers medical device manufacturers to deliver wireless health quickly and easily to those who need it.

ATA12 coverage is sponsored by HP. HP’s extensive portfolio of products, solutions, services and relationships can help your healthcare organization achieve quality business practices and provide quality patient care.

Smartphones are helping physicians find new jobs

2012-04-28T14:45:00.000-04:00

There's an interesting story on American Medical News (by the AMA) titled, "How mobile devices can help a physician land a job." Most physicians in private practice may not be looking for a new job because they are so invested in the practice that they have "built." However, we're seeing a shift in employment models and more physicians are salaried employees of hospitals or health systems. Hence, it's not that uncommon to encounter physicians who are interested in finding a new job. Plus, some may be motivated simply because of their need to relocate.

Job alerts and secure social media networks are some of the key tools that are helping physicians find new jobs. I'd encourage any physician who's serious about finding a new job to join Doximity and reconnect with classmates and old colleagues. Sometimes, that's the best way to find a new job.

Journal Club for iPhone

2012-04-26T09:43:00.001-04:00

Dr. Manuel Lam, an internal medicine resident at Stanford Hospital and colleague, David Iberri, have put out their first app called "Journal Club for iPhone".

Here's how he describes why they created the app:

In medicine, evidence is the paradigm. It's important to understand the evidence-based trials which support our clinical practice. Of course, its difficult to be reading every single journal article in NEJM, Lancet, BMJ, JACC thoroughly. We sought to create an app that summarizes the most seminal articles into morsels that clinicians can digest quickly and focus primarily on what is important--which is taking care of patients.

Journal Club for iPhone puts landmark clinical trials at your fingertips, and answers the clinical questions you need to know.

Features:
• Summaries are written by medicine physicians
• Articles cover a wide range of subspecialties
• Share article summaries with colleagues
• Stay current with instant updates
• Powered by the docs at Wiki Journal Club (http://wikijournalclub.org)

Check out journalclubapp.com and download the iPhone app.

Remote PC access via mobile devices

2012-04-25T16:26:00.000-04:00

Do you access your work PC on your mobile device? As more health care professionals depend on computer systems for electronic health records (EHRs) and computerized physician order entry (CPOE), there is a growing need for remote computer support and troubleshooting. Some of those issues can get handled with devices running mobile operating systems like iOS, Android, and Windows Mobile. I've personally tested a variety of remote desktop apps on my iPad, my Android tablet, and even on various smartphones. It's definitely easier to navigate around the remote PC when you're using a larger touch screen.

Since I have several mobile devices running Google Android, I've been experimenting with Android remote support solutions. I use the same Google account on all my Android devices, so once I purchase an app for one device, I can use that same app on all my other Android devices. Recently, Google renamed their app store from the Android Market to the Google Play Store. That's where you'll find remote desktop apps for your Android device. Some of you may even be looking for Windows Mobile remote support because you haven't given up your Treo or you are using some of the latest HTC Windows Phones.

Remote PC access is great when you need to troubleshoot a problem, but it's also convenient when you need to access your EHR to review a patient's record or to e-prescribe.

Assurance Wireless and OmniCare Health Plan Partner in Michigan

2012-04-23T14:11:00.000-04:00

This came out last week and demonstrates how groups are coming together to provide free mobile health services to Medicaid enrollees.

Assurance Wireless and OmniCare Health Plan Partner in Michigan to Improve Communications for Medicaid Enrollees

New relationship will help Medicaid enrollees stay in contact with health care providers

WARREN, N.J. – Assurance Wireless and OmniCare Health Plan Inc. have partnered to spread awareness of Assurance Wireless, a federal Lifeline Assistance program to OmniCare’s 47,000 enrollees in Michigan. This partnership with Assurance Wireless, a cell phone service that provides a wireless phone and 250 free minutes of wireless voice service monthly to eligible low-income customers, will allow OmniCare to strengthen channels of communication with its members to promote preventive health care and regular check-ups with their doctors. OmniCare Members will have unlimited access to their Primary Care Physician’s office and to the health plan via voice calls and text messaging without impacting their free minutes.

Read more »

Will the OScan (mobile phone attachment) detect oral cancers?

2012-04-23T13:52:00.001-04:00

Can a mobile phone detect oral cancers? Perhaps, if the phone is paired with a resourceful team at Stanford that is developing an a phone attachment.

The OScan team at Stanford University has developed an affordable screening tool that brings standardized, multi-modal imaging of the oral cavity into the hands of rural health workers around the world, allowing individuals to conduct screenings for oral lesions. This inexpensive device mounts on a conventional camera phone and allows for data to be instantly transmitted to dentists and oral surgeons. OScan aims to empower minimally-skilled health workers to connect early stage patients to health care providers and teach communities about the importance of oral hygiene.

You can learn more about OScan here.

Physician Executive Journal (PEJ) for iOS and Android

2012-04-20T08:30:00.000-04:00

The Physician Executive Journal (PEJ) is an award-winning publication covering the world of medical management and physician leadership. Published by the American College of Physician Executives. The journal is powered by Texterity.

Now, read the PEJ on your iOS or Android mobile device.

Learn more about the iOS app here and the Android app here.

Spend the summer with Rock Health & Harvard Medical School

2012-04-19T11:43:00.000-04:00

Do you have an idea or startup that’s working to solve a health-related issue? Join Rock Health for their first summer program in Boston, sponsored by Merck. You’ll gain to access their unrivaled community of experts, get a $20k grant to help cover expenses, enjoy shared office space at Harvard Medical School and connect with a diverse network of entrepreneurs to transform your idea into a business.

They are already extending interviews to promising teams, and will continue to accept applications on a rolling basis, so get yours in soon!

Program details

3 month accelerator program for health startups
June – August 2012

Startups receive

$20,000 startup grant
Office space at Harvard Medical School
Mentorship, workshops, and operational support

Apply here

Mobile Monday Mid-Atlantic Demo Night

2012-04-19T09:00:00.000-04:00

What are you doing next Monday?

April 23 5:30pm
Mobile Monday Mid-Atlantic Demo Night
The Hub Cira Centre in Philadelphia

Partnered with Philly Tech Week and Sponsored by Volpe and Koenig P.C. and appRenaissance.

Mobile Monday's Demo Night is your opportunity to see what's new in mobile technologies coming out of this region. Many past presenters have gone on to great things, so this is your chance to see what's new and interesting in mobile and help pick the winner of Demo Night.

SnipSnap - A a mobile application to let you scan, save, and redeem printed coupons on your smartphone.
Interact - A geosocial interaction app that visualizes how you're connected to others within a given proximity and allows for real time interaction.
Communilator - An advanced mobile phone language translation application.
OneTwoSee - A companion application for baseball fans who love to know everything about the players, teams.
CloudMine - Offers a hosted backend-as-a-service platform for developers to build rich and interactive apps with full backend features without writing a single line of server code.

Learn more about the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of Mobile Monday here: http://www.momo-ma.org/

2012 mHealth Summit – Call for Presentations Now Open!

2012-04-18T13:02:00.000-04:00

2012 mHealth Summit – Call for Presentations Now Open!

SUBMISSION DEADLINE: FRIDAY, JUNE 29th

Where Technology, Business, Research and Policy Connect

The largest event of its kind, the 4th annual mHealth Summit will bring together leaders in government, industry, providers, academia, the private sector and not-for-profit organizations from across the mobile health ecosystem to advance collaboration in the use of wireless technology to improve health outcomes in the United States and abroad.

TOPIC AREAS

HEALTH & HEALTHCARE DELIVERY: Use of mHealth technologies to improve health and healthcare delivery at all income levels globally.

TECHNOLOGY: Examination of technologies being deployed today and exploration of new technologies under development.

BUSINESS: Highlights of business and finance models impacting mHealth along with practical lessons learned necessary to scale mHealth globally.

POLICY: Insights on the legal, health & regulatory policy of mHealth necessary to accelerate this promising engine of health care innovation.

RESEARCH: Ground-breaking health research using mobile technologies to improve clinical medicine and public health outcomes.

The Call for Presentations includes everything you need to know to submit your proposal for the event. For more information on the summit, please visit www.mhealthsummit.org

2012 GSMA-mHealth Alliance Mobile Health Summit

2012-04-18T10:51:00.000-04:00

The 2012 GSMA-mHealth Alliance Mobile Health Summit is taking place 29 May - 1 June in Cape Town.

Similar to last year’s very successful event, Mobile Health Summit (MHS) is brought to you by leaders in the global health and mobile industries, GSMA and the mHealth Alliance. The global reach and initiatives of these two organisations will ensure the Summit will encourage the collaboration and relationships needed to realise the potential of mobile health.

The 2012 event will include:

A spectacular conference agenda focusing on the hottest topics and issues in the mobile health market.
A cutting-edge exhibition showcasing the most innovative Mobile Health products and services
The industry's premier forum for mobile health networking and deal-making with the C- Level leaders of healthcare institutions, mobile network operators, development organisations and solutions providers, as well as government representatives, regulators and policymakers

Learn more here: http://www.mobilehealthsummit.com

Smartphone Apps Helping Older Adults Improve Health

2012-04-17T13:46:00.000-04:00

This came out last week, but you may have missed it. Researchers at Stanford are actively looking at ways mobile apps can help older adults with their health care.

Smartphone Apps Help Teach Older Adults New Health Tricks

Training older adults to use specialized Smartphone applications can raise their awareness of ways to improve their health, according to preliminary results from a study at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

New Orleans, LA (PRWEB) April 10, 2012

Training older adults to use specialized Smartphone applications can raise their awareness of ways to improve their health, according to preliminary results from a study at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

The results will be presented April 11 at a poster session of the Society of Behavioral Medicine Annual Meeting in New Orleans.

The study is part of an effort by researchers at the Stanford Prevention Research Center to find new ways of encouraging U.S. adults to increase their physical activity and improve their health. Past studies have indicated that few meet the minimum recommended guidelines of 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week.

Read more »

AMA Weigh What Matters App

2012-04-11T17:31:00.000-04:00

The AMA Weigh What Matters app makes it easy to work with your physician to establish weight, healthy eating, and physical activity goals, and track your progress toward achieving them. It also calculates your BMI score, and provides a mechanism to view progress reports and email them to your physician.

The app is part of Weigh What Matters, a family obesity prevention program developed by the American Medical Association, which encourages patients to work with their physicians to maintain a healthy weight, eat better, and increase physical activity. Weigh What Matters is part of the AMA Healthier Life Steps™ initiative.

This app is available for the Apple iPhone®, iPad® and iPod Touch® on the AMA iTunes store, and for Android devices.

Learn more here.

4 Steps to Help Deter Smartphone Thefts and Protect Consumer Data

2012-04-10T10:38:00.000-04:00

U.S. Wireless Industry Announces Steps to Help Deter Smartphone Thefts and Protect Consumer Data

Washington, D.C. – CTIA-The Wireless Association®, together with participating wireless companies, today announced they worked with the federal government and law enforcement to develop four steps to help deter smartphone thefts and protect consumer data. These four voluntary industry commitments by CTIA and our participating members will effectively address this issue while continuing to evolve as new wireless products and services become available.

Read more »

Aids Walk OC Smartphone app

2012-04-03T10:10:00.000-04:00

Aids Walk OC Smartphone app to offer signups to walk and collect donations

Laguna Niguel, California, April 3, 2012 - Iconosys, Inc., a leading mobile safety Smartphone application developer in Orange County, CA, today announces the release of the Aids Walk 2012 Smartphone App for the AIDS Services Foundation Orange County.

Walkers can now use their Smartphones, in order to register, donate, and support the foundation.

The AIDS Walk Orange County is set to happen on May 6th, 2012 inside the Disneyland Resort.

"In this, AIDS Walk OC's 26th year, we are very proud to be able to align ourselves with such a worthy cause! Our app, with year round usability, we are confident will be appreciated and enjoyed by the thousands that support this organization." Wayne Irving CEO and co-founder, Iconosys, Inc. "Development is underway and we expect to launch the app in the next few weeks."

Read more »

Testing the AliveCor iPhone ECG

2012-04-01T17:59:00.002-04:00

Over the weekend, I had the chance to test the AliveCor iPhone ECG and had the privilege of spending time with founder Dr. David Albert. Although this device is not currently approved by the FDA or available for purchase, it has tremendous potential and I'll be following his company closely. You've probably already seen the following video that demonstrates this small device:

SwiftPayMD™ iPhone/iPad App Helps Doctors Get Paid

2012-03-30T17:10:00.001-04:00

Doctors always seem to struggle with the reimbursement issue. Here's something that may help: SwiftPayMD

This is a press release that came out a few days ago:

New SwiftPayMD™ iPhone/iPad App Helps Doctors Get Paid More, Faster

Iconic Data expands its mobile technology offerings with an app that lets physicians 'Touch, Talk, and Submit' bills in real-time

CHICAGO, March 28, 2012 - Iconic Data, the healthcare IT startup that provides healthcare professionals with HIPAA compliant mobile technology solutions to improve productivity, profitability and patient safety, today announced the launch of SwiftPayMD™, an all-new mobile revenue cycle management app for the iPhone and iPad that lets on-the-go doctors immediately submit patient diagnosis and billing information to their office from the hospital point of care via speech.

Read more »