also seeing that the larger iPhone 6 Plus screen is being used more frequently for reading medical news and
sending HIPAA-secure communication. Our hypothesis is that doctors may be waiting to see other colleagues
using the 6 Plus before deciding which size to purchase.
out: Doximity
Referencing - The original digital health app
use-case continues to do well with physicians today.
Quick look-up of medications, lab values, calculators and diagnoses can help busy doctors stay on top
of everything while on the go. Check out: MedCalc,
Epocrates, Micromedex
News - Staying current on a specialty’s medical
news can be a full-time job in itself. A report in the
Journal of the American Medical Library Association
(JAMLA) found that over 7,000 articles are published
monthly in primary care journals alone - something
that would take the average physician 20 hours of
reading each day to cover. Apps have begun to deliver
curated CME-ready news to doctors based on their
clinical interests in a mobile format that’s easy to
browse. Check out: Doximity, QxMD
The future of mobile
Google Glass and Apple Watch are two post-smart-phone mobile devices being watched closely in the
medical sector. Already today, Google Glass is being
tested for recording surgeries, showing a “heads-up”
display of patient information and anatomy labs.
Apple Watch is predicted to have significant adoption among physicians for things like scheduling and
MOBILE
Mobile use in medicine
So physicians are early adopters of mobile devices and
quick to upgrade to the latest Apple phones. A far cry
from the anti-technology stereotype. Now, let’s take a
close look at how physicians are actually using smart
phones in their clinical workflow. There are five major
categories of mobile use in medicine: (image from Dr.
Joseph Schwimmer, InfoSnack)
Collaboration - Strict HIPAA regulations have
created significant demand for physician-only communication apps. With verification of physician
credentials, health apps can enable seamless doctor-to-doctor communication through messaging, email
and digital fax. Finally, replacing the pager. Check
out: Figure1, Doximity, HIPPOMsg
Scheduling - Coordinating physician schedules
in busy hospitals is no small task and a number of
apps are taking on the calendaring space, including
Amion, with over 200,000 physician users. Check out:
QGenda, Clairvia, Amion
Social networking - From residency to retirement, medical careers have always been heavily social
in nature. Recent medical reform has only increased
the significance of a physician’s referral and career
networks. New apps are bringing LinkedIn-style professional profiles and networking to medicine. Check
