BlackBerry: Doctor’s best friend too?
by The PocketBerry Team
Usually when we connect doctors and technology, we think of the traditional pager or maybe even a cellular phone equipped on the doctor’s hip. “Many doctors and nurses and healthcare organizations have resisted the move from traditional “feature” cell phones, pagers, recorders and other “old-school” gadgets to smartphones due to security concerns and comfort with existing technologies,” stated Fraser Edward who is currently Research In Motion’s manager of market development and healthcare.
Time goes on, and technology evolves in every industry you can think of. Since security is a big feature on the BlackBerry, it would benefit the doctor a lot more, making it the primary choice. Here we list a series of applications made for doctors and other workers in the medical field just for the BlackBerry handheld.
Medical Reference & Drug Guides
Perhaps the most basic of medical applications for BlackBerry smartphones, mobile medical reference guides from software companies like QxMD and Epocrates Rx help promote patient safety by giving doctors and physicians immediate and simple access to information on specific drugs/narcotics, drug interactions, dosage recommendations and much more.
Such applications offer efficient, rapid and relevant search compared to printed medical reference guides. Guides also enable doctors or physicians to make or validate medical decisions at the point of care, decreasing time to diagnosis/prescription and reducing potential medical errors, according to RIM.
1) QxMD ECG Guide
Creator: QxMD Software
Description, from BlackBerry App World: “The ECG Guide app offers ECG interpretation from a Cardiology perspective, with over 120 high resolution ECG examples and a quiz feature.” (Note: QxMD also offers a variety of free, medical-related software, like a pregnancy wheel, cardio calculator and a gastroenterology tool.)
Price: $7.99
Where to Download: BlackBerry App World
2) Epocrates Rx
Creator: Epocrates Inc.
Description, from Epocrates.com: “[S]ubscription drug reference provides hundreds of&medication monographs and enables you to easily check for interactions among prescription, [over the counter] OTC, and alternative medicines. Plus, find the right treatment for hundreds of infectious diseases, and check IV compatibility in a jiffy.”
Additional features include a valuable “pill identification” option, which helps you identify pills of unknown origin; detailed information on more than 600 common alternative medicines; and detailed treatment guidelines for hundreds of infectious diseases.
Price: $99.99 a year; $169.99 for two-year subscription
Where to Download: Epocrates.com
3) Skyscape Medical Resources
Creator: Skyscape
Description, from Blackberry App World: “[A] highly useful collection of free Medical Information and Decision Support resources for Healthcare Professionals, including Physicians, Nurses, Physician Assistants, Nurse Practitioners, Medical Students, Nursing Students and More.
Free resources include: Rx Drug Information; Outlines in Clinical Medicine; Archimedes medical calculator; MedWatch current medical info from FDA and other public sources; and continuing medical education (CME) activities.
Price: Free
Where to Download: BlackBerry App World
Patient Data Management & Charge Capture
New patient data management and charge capture applications give medical professionals access to backend data and patient healthcare information via mobile devices, all the while maintaining HIPAA and other compliance requirements.
-by Otoniel Bruno
