Medical Informatics Project ProposalOlivia Questore

I would like to research the pros and cons/effectiveness and efficiency of having in-hospital tablets and other hand-held devices. I would also like to research how these programs

work and their effect on the economy. I think this is an interesting topic and is the way of the

future as far as medical technology.

Why present this topic?I currently work in a hospital that is in the process of switching over to in-hopital tablets. The doctors and

nurses and other health professionals have mixed feelings about this. I personally think it is more efficient and the idea that

scans and other important medical information is readily available at the

health professionals’ fingertips is refreshing. I would like to present

this because I feel that these will one day be the ways of hospitals all over the world, and it is important to be

educated in the process.

Discussing the Pro’s• creating new classes of medical imaging consumers beyond radiologists • efficient for radiologists and referring physicians by reducing wasted time waiting for a

consultation • imaging easily shared from one physician to another• pharmacists who used a tablet computer to verify medication orders during their rounds

spent less time on the task than those who used a traditional computer terminal (1)• provides ready access to medical records, medication profiles, and the most recent

patient laboratory values (2)• average time to order verification using the mobile device was 7.5 minutes, whereas

verification using the computer terminal typically took 38.9 minutes (3)• ability to easily show patients their scans and explain to them the results (4)

• Discussing the pro’s will bring to light the wonderful advances in technology and how they may help health professionals and patients

Discussing the Con’s• tablets may be fragile, with cases though this shouldn’t be much

of an issue• battery life may not be long enough to get through an entire shift• not easy to disinfect, could be potential hazard• wireless access may not always be available, could be costly to

accommodate (5)• may be an issue with security

• Discussing the cons will help the public understand why this new integration may not be the wises choice, and why health professionals may disapprove of their use

Resources

(1,2,3) http://www.pharmacytimes.com/publications/issue/2013/September2013/Study-Shows-Tablet-Computers-Use-in-Hospital-Medication-Checks

(4) http://health.usnews.com/health-news/most-connected-hospitals/articles/2011/10/31/hospital-care-how-smart-phones-and-tablets-are-helping-patients

(5)http://www.the-hospitalist.org/details/article/1309389/The_Tablet_Revolution.html