In the Medical Field? There’s an App for That!
This phrase has entered our pop culture: “There’s an app for that.” It’s quite a comment on how ubiquitous smartphones and mobile access to the Internet have become.
Now that the initial wave of games and social media apps are firmly entrenched, we are starting to see a lot of highly practical and specialized apps making their appearance. One area in particular is reaping the benefits — an area that requires a lot of information juggling and accurate calculations — the field of medicine.
This usefulness begins at the medical-student level. The Canadian medical student who blogs under the pseudonym “Medaholic” attests to this in a recent blog post:
If there’s one medical tool I use all the time when I’m on the wards, it’s my iPhone. Yes, even more than the stethoscope! In fact, from personal experience, over 80-90% of my classmates, residents and staff physicians use an iPhone or iPod Touch. The reason why the iPhone is so popular is because it’s got the best apps for the job. Medications are properly dosed, medical calculations are done correctly and you’re able to look up obscure information at your fingertips ensuring patients receive better care.
Medaholic then goes on provide a roundup of reviews for 10 apps that are deemed the cream of the crop. From Medscape Mobile, which provides access to the entire eMedicine database, to Skyscape Medical Resources, which brings together a number of the leading tools such as a five-minute consultation, Harrison’s, Dynamed, Harriet Lane Pediatrics handbook, and the Washington Manual. Take a look at the comprehensive list of the “Top 10 iPhone Apps Every Medical Student Should Have” for more.
While many of these could well prove useful for residents or doctors, there is also a number of apps aimed specifically at them. NursingSchools.net was looking at these as long ago as last year.
One example of how smartphones make reams of data easier to navigate is ICD9Consult. It’s described as follows:
ICD9 Consult: Never go hunting through a book to find a code again. This app lists ICD9-CM diagnosis codes and lets you search and browse by category. It includes more than 21,000 individual codes, making it a phenomenal portable tool for medical professionals. ($14.99)
Diagnosis codes are only the beginning though. From continuing education for surgeons to up-to-the-minute info on drug trials, there is a staggering array of tools available. Since it is estimated that 80% of doctors will be using smartphones by next year, I’d wager we will see an explosion of mobile tools in the near future. Take a look at NursingSchools.net’s list of “15 Most Forward Thinking iPhone Apps for Doctors and Nurses.”
So, after medical students, nurses, and doctors, what group of medical professionals have we not covered? Administrators. In this case, the usual array of office and productivity apps are the rule, but we are starting to see some apps geared specifically towards those who run hospitals or other medical facilities.
Providian Medical Equipment, a company specializing in refurbished ultrasound machines, has just released an app which allows you to search for an ultrasound machine by entering the exact specifications of the machine you need. The results include pictures and notes on the price, age, features, and condition of the machine. Could this be the first of a wave of apps geared towards those who do the purchasing for hospitals? I would not be shocked. You can check out Providian’s app here.
Apps are everywhere. If you’re in the medical field, you should certainly keep abreast of these tools as they will be becoming more and more a part of your daily routine.
In closing, I’d like to leave you with one more excellent resource. iMedical Apps is an independent online review website written by a team of physicians and medical students. It covers Blackberry, Android, iPhone, and iPad apps, and is an incredibly useful resource.
What medical apps have you found to be useful? Please let us know!
Image: photostock / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Related posts:
- Reasons To have an iPhone Rather than an Android Phone Reasons why an iPhone is a better choice than an Android phone even after Android has been aged a while....
- CommentLuv Premium: Add Custom Twitter Field to WordPress Comment Form I was busy installing CommentLuv Premium on two of my blogs last week and noticed that even though the plugin...
- Top 5 Essential Travel Apps Top 5 Essential Travel Apps for iPhone and Android to help you get around in foreign destinations....
- iPhone Apps Help Kids in Speech Therapy iPhone apps that help children in speech therapy have advantages in that they are easy to use and are more...
- Unlocking Your iPhone For Any Service Provider Have you ever wondered how to unlock an iphone to make it work with any Cell Phone Service Provider? I...
Fun fact, there are several apps (for iPhone anyway) that are for the medical field.
There is a BMD 10 year fracture risk app (my dad uses this one), and a dictionary of medical terms. I know there are others but...I am not in the medical field so I don't know them all.
- spam
- offensive
- disagree
- off topic
Like