WiFi Wellness: Healthcare Techies Build Patient Apps to Cut Costs

Author: Michael Brewer

Author: Michael Brewer

Baby Boomers are trashing their simple, Jitterbug-ish handsets and staying in touch with Blackberrys and iPhones more than ever before; a trend thats not lost on the cost-conscious eyes of leaders within the healthcare industry. This new power generation of slowly aging but connected consumers is the target of a slew of new handheld applications now in development that do everything from provide one-touch access to health and wellness information to registering blood sugar levels, scheduling reminders for medication, tracking patient heart rates and on-demand video chat via handheld with doctors and nurses. As these phones continue to get even more powerful than they already are, WiFi healthcare will continue to rise. Icyou, a new start-up company that primarily manages and provides content for several Internet video libraries, recently announced the availability of its iPhone application. The app allows users to navigate the company site for health information and download videos for viewing away from home. Everything from emergency CPR lessons to motivational fitness videos are now a touch screen away. Among the more unique health-related applications for smart phones is My Life Record, a $50 application that allows you to manage and access medical records including doctor information and images such as X-rays, ultrasounds and electrocardiograms. The company says in spite of its relatively high cost (when compared to other apps that typically cost about a dollar), the software has grown in popularity since its introduction to the iPhone platform a year ago. Once reserved for the clinical environment, professional-grade hearing tests, food trackers, medication alarms and other apps are making their way into the smart phone mainstream. Insurance companies and hospitals hope they lead to significant cost-cuts to their bottom lines while emphasizing wellness as part of their policy holders daily routines. Healthcare providers and doctors were among the first consumers to take desktop medical applications into their palms, since mobility and 24/7 schedules made it virtually impossible to track patient care without the aid of software. The most common physician and health care provider apps now include: Drug databases Medical calculators Reference programs Decision support for both physicians and nurses Tracking patient stats (weight, blood pressure, etc.) Patient history accessing, managing, and documenting Communication managers Payer tools (coding, eligibility determination, etc.) Chronic disease support companies, whose business model is built around call centers staffed with registered nurses, are also re-thinking how they provide service. Some industry analysts say online chat via smart phones will become the norm since their typical patient base is living longer and not necessarily confined to their homes.About the Author:

To most people, health insurance is a plastic card with numbers that lets you into the doctors office and a little booklet of paper that lives in your filing cabinet, closet or some dusty corner of your home. To Michael, affordable health insurance and the historical reforms that go along with the inequality of healthcare in America are topics of healthy discussion, worthy of further study and catalysts for education and action. Michael lives in Miami.

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