Difference between revisions of "Mobile Handheld Technology"

From Clinfowiki
Jump to: navigation, search
 
Line 1: Line 1:
    Mobile Handheld Technology has heralded the opportunity to provide physicians with access to information, resources, and people at the right time and place. Mobility is an important component for health care delivery (1). Mobile technologies provide benefits of paper charts and desktop computers in their portability and support for information access anywhere and anytime (2). Handheld devices include tablet computers and personal digital assistants (PDAs).  These devices are generally small, portable, lightweight computers with wireless network capability. A review demonstrated adoption among health care providers who are primarily hospital-based at 45% to 85% (3).  Handheld devices uses include: administrative support (e.g., billing and scheduling); professional activities (e.g., patient tracking and electronic prescribing); documentation; decision support (e.g., clinical and drug references); education and research. Potentially benefits include improved productivity, increased information access, better communication, fewer medical errors, greater mobility, and improved quality and care.  Another advantage of handheld devices is providing information and decision support access at the point-of -need. Disadvantages related to entering data, which is slower with a stylus, more erroneous and less satisfactory. Other limitations include smaller screen size designed for individual use so can limit collaboration, present challenges in viewing and entering data, which can lead to errors. However, the literature is limited on demonstrating that handheld devices improve outcomes and workflow efficiencies because of their mobility.  Additional research needed to evaluate further the questions related to impacting these mobile devices has on work practices and outcomes (4).
+
      Mobile Handheld Technology has heralded the opportunity to provide physicians with access to information, resources, and people at the right time and place. Mobility is an important component for health care delivery (1). Mobile technologies provide benefits of paper charts and desktop computers in their portability and support for information access anywhere and anytime (2). Handheld devices include tablet computers and personal digital assistants (PDAs).  These devices are generally small, portable, lightweight computers with wireless network capability. A review demonstrated adoption among health care providers who are primarily hospital-based at 45% to 85% (3).  Handheld devices uses include: administrative support (e.g., billing and scheduling); professional activities (e.g., patient tracking and electronic prescribing); documentation; decision support (e.g., clinical and drug references); education and research. Potentially benefits include improved productivity, increased information access, better communication, fewer medical errors, greater mobility, and improved quality and care.  Another advantage of handheld devices is providing information and decision support access at the point-of -need. Disadvantages related to entering data, which is slower with a stylus, more erroneous and less satisfactory. Other limitations include smaller screen size designed for individual use so can limit collaboration, present challenges in viewing and entering data, which can lead to errors. However, the literature is limited on demonstrating that handheld devices improve outcomes and workflow efficiencies because of their mobility.  Additional research needed to evaluate further the questions related to impacting these mobile devices has on work practices and outcomes (4).
1. Bardram JE. Activity-based computing: Support for mobility and collaboration in ubiquitous computing. Pers Ubiquit Comput 2005;9(5):312-22.
+
2. Kuziemsky CE, Laul F, Leung RC. A review on diffusion of personal digital assistants in healthcare. J Med Syst 2005;29(4):335-42.
+
3. Garritty C, El Elman K. Who’s using PDAs? Estimates of PDA use by health care providers: A systematic review of surveys. J Med Internet Res 2006;8(2):7.
+
4. Prgomet M, Beorgiou A, Westbrook JI, The impact of mobile technology on hospital physicians’ work practices and patient care: as systemic review. JAMIA. 2009;16:792-801.
+

Revision as of 01:57, 22 May 2010

     Mobile Handheld Technology has heralded the opportunity to provide physicians with access to information, resources, and people at the right time and place. Mobility is an important component for health care delivery (1). Mobile technologies provide benefits of paper charts and desktop computers in their portability and support for information access anywhere and anytime (2). Handheld devices include tablet computers and personal digital assistants (PDAs).  These devices are generally small, portable, lightweight computers with wireless network capability. A review demonstrated adoption among health care providers who are primarily hospital-based at 45% to 85% (3).  Handheld devices uses include: administrative support (e.g., billing and scheduling); professional activities (e.g., patient tracking and electronic prescribing); documentation; decision support (e.g., clinical and drug references); education and research. Potentially benefits include improved productivity, increased information access, better communication, fewer medical errors, greater mobility, and improved quality and care.  Another advantage of handheld devices is providing information and decision support access at the point-of -need. Disadvantages related to entering data, which is slower with a stylus, more erroneous and less satisfactory. Other limitations include smaller screen size designed for individual use so can limit collaboration, present challenges in viewing and entering data, which can lead to errors. However, the literature is limited on demonstrating that handheld devices improve outcomes and workflow efficiencies because of their mobility.  Additional research needed to evaluate further the questions related to impacting these mobile devices has on work practices and outcomes (4).