Home: Physicians: Handheld Devices for Patients, Doctors, and Care Givers

News

• The Write Stuff - Kiplinger.com, August 2000
• Wireless Software lets Doctors Write Prescriptions on Handhelds - MicroTimes.com, August 1, 2000
• Avoid Insulin Shock and fix your clock - PalmPower Magazine, July 2000
• An e-cure for doctors' chicken scratch - USA Today, Nov 12, 1999
• Get me that Web site, stat! - USA Today, Sept 17, 2000
• Handheld computers save time for physicians, patients - CNN.com, June 5, 2000

Products and Services

• DocZ Medical Information - This page includes some medical summaries and medical equations useful for pediatrics formatted for the PalmPilot.
• Dr. Oh's Palm Medicine Page - This site has some medical links for the PalmPilot along with some medical databases for the PalmPilot.
• ER-CPR Saves Lives - Applications in workplace emergency, pre-hospital, ambulance, health, home care and fire services sectors.
• ePhysician.com - The ePhysician site enables healthcare professionals to order lab tests and prescriptions and can provide mobile access to patient information. With a PalmPilot, the health provider can make the request, dock the PalmPilot to a PC and place the order.
• ePocrates.com - Designed specifically for the Palm™ handheld organizer, the ePocrates qRx gives you up-to-date and easy-to-use information on over 1500 of the most commonly prescribed drugs.
• GlucoPilot - Software is available here to aid in diabetes management with the PalmPilot.
• Handheldmed.com - This virtual community is designed to help physicians, medical students, and other healthcare professionals. It will cover topics such as medical uses for both Windows CE and PalmOS devices. The site also will include forums, software archives and reviews.
• Healthy Palmpilot - Health care information available for the PalmPilot.
• Medical Communication Systems - Mobile MedData - Medical Communication Systems produces medical software. They produce Mobile MedData which is a patient information manager application for the PalmPilot.
• MD Helper - This company offers an application called MD Cards. "MD Cards is a Palm Pilot application that maintains and presents an alphabetical list of medical Information Cards that can be conveniently selected and displayed.
• MobileMed Forum This is a forum for Newton, PalmPC, Palm Pilot, Windows CE, PSION and other users of technology interested in the application of mobile computer technologies in Medicine/Health Care.
• Pal-m-edical .com - Pal-M-edical provides software, hardware, and numerous linking options for medical professionals of any level of training using the palm pilot.
• PalmPilot Tools - This site is maintained by Thomas Schussler. It contains some Medical Databases for the PalmPilot with information medical students, physicians, and other health care providers.
• PalmTools - PalmTools produces some end-user medical applications for the Palm including Asthma Management, MedHistory and MedVisits.
• PDAMD.com - The HandHeld Headquarters for Medical Professionals
• PDA Medical - PDA Medical produces medical software for the PalmPilot and other PDA devices.
• Pen Computer Solutions - PCS designs and programs custom software applications for the PalmPilot, IBM WorkPad and Symbol SPT 1500.
• Palm Filez - Contains a searchable database of PalmPilot applications (maybe going down soon, 03/10/00)

Research Articles

• Popularity growing rapidly as CMA Online turns 5 - From CMAJ 2000;162:858
• Gadget review The PalmPilot / WorkPad Personal Data Assistant for Rural Physicians. Approx. $500 plus tax. Available at most office supply and computer stores. - From CJRM 1998;3(4):260
• Peraino V. The whole world in your hand: the PDAfor real this time. Wired 1999; 7: 136-143.

Journal Articles

• Alpert, Mark. "Physicians, Heal Thyself." In Scientific American [online] 2000. Available from http://www.sciam.com/2000/0500issue/0500issue/0500scicit6.html
  This article discusses human errors that occur in health care, particularly errors on the part of doctors.
  
  
• Anonymous. 'Pocket-sized electronic books& Physicians. Desk Reference.'  Library Journal. 117(13):32, 1992 Aug.
  This article is about  the use of the handheld device.
  
  
• Baker, Sharon. "E-health." CMA Management vol(74) issue:3, 2000, p.41-44.
  (Available through Proquest Direct)
  Canadian hospitals and health care organizations are not benefiting from the great possibilities in applications of Internet technologies in health care.
  
  
• Bergeron, Bryan P. "Digital Doc. Personal digital assistants: another step toward ubiquitous computing." Postgraduate Medicine vol(103) no.6, 1998, p.29-31.
  Available: http://www.postgradmed.com/issues/1998/06_98/dd_jun98.htm
  This article talks about PDAs and which ones are best from a doctor's point of view.
  
  
• Bergeron, Bryan . "Personal Digital Assistants: Another step towards ubiquitous computing." In Postgraduate Medicine vol. 103, no. 6 [online] 1998. Available from http://www.postgradmed.com/issues/1998/06_98/dd_jun98.htm
  This article discusses relative advantages and disadvantages of using personal digital assistants in clinical medical practice.
  
  
• Blackman, Jon, et al. "The Usefulness of Handheld Computers in a Surgical Group Practice." Proceedings / AMIA Annual Symposium. :686-90, 1999.
  Available: http://www.amia.org/pubs/symposia/D005670.PDF
  Research results on a system designed to allow physicians in a hospital setting using handheld computers to: access their surgical schedules, to track patients in multiple hospitals, and to quickly enter billing information.
  
  
• Cordell WH. Peak DE. 'The Palmtop computer: medicine's new "peripheral brain".' MD Computing. 9(4): 264-8, 1992 Jul-Aug.
  This describes the handheld device act as a peripheral brain inside the physician's pocket.
  
  
• Denley, Ian, and Smith, Simon Weston. "Privacy in Clinical Information Systems in Secondary Care." In British Medical Journal vol. 318 [online] 1999. Available from http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/318/7194/1328#B2
  This article discusses general privacy and security issues in dealing with systems that store clinical information.
  
  
• Ebell, Mark, and David Rovner. "Information in the Palm of Your Hand." Journal of Family Practice vol(49) no.3, 2000, p.243-51.
  Description and examination both hand-held computers and medical record and medical reference software.
  
  
• Egger, Ed. "Physicians using Internet more, but need effective hand-held devices to automate care." Health Care Strategic Management vol(18) issue:7, 2000, p.14-15. (Available through Proquest Direct)
  This article briefly talks about the idea that hand-held computer devices may increase the number of physicians making use of the Internet for clinical purposes.
  
  
• Fishman SM. 'Palmtop computers on the medical wards.'  JAMA 267(1): 169, 1992 Jan 1.
  This page includes the usage and benefits of the PalmPilot to the health professionals.
  
  
• Helwing AL. Flynn C. 'Using palm-top computers to improve students. evidence-based decision making.'  Academic Medicine 73(5): 603-4, 1998 May.
  An academic article provides the usage of handheld devices.
  
  
• Kasper CE. 'Computer use and nursing research. Personal digital assistants and clinical practice.'  Western Journal of Nursing Research 18(6): 717-20, 1996 Dec. 
  This is about the use of handheld devices in clinical practice. 
  
  
• Labkoff, Steven E. "Can you live without a handheld computer?" Patient Care vol(31) no.3, 1997, p.114-124.
  (Available through Info Trac, Health Reference Center - Academic)
  This article is about palm-top computers as a resource for physicians. It goes over the variety of applications they can be used for, such as patient history summaries, appointment reminders and drug interaction data. At the end of the article is a recount of the 'day in the life' of a physician who is making use of this technology.
  
  
• Lingle, Virginia A. Personal digital assistants make inroads into Heath Care.   Medical Library Association. [http://www.mlanet.org/publications/mlanews/2000/maynews00.html]
  This is Medical Library Association website.  The article is part of a series submitted by members of the Medical Informatics Section. It has details of different palm operating system softwares along with how to make PDAs more efficient.
  
  
• Noble, Suzanne. "Nifty High Tech Tools Make the Physician's Life Easier and More Productive." In Health Management Technology [online] 1999. Available from http://www.healthmgttech.com
  This article discusses doctors resistance to adapt to new technology and it also describes some new technologies that have been adapted to the health care field including personal digital assistants.
  
  
• Noble, Suzanne. " PDAs and Hand-helds: World without wires." In Health Management Technology [online] 2000. Available from http://www.healthmgttech.com
  This article briefly describes the wireless communication infrastructure that has allowed for the implementation of personal digital assistants in hospitals. This article also describes some of the medical software that is available for handheld computers.
  
  
• PC Technology. "PDAs." In PC Technology Guide [online] 2000. Available from http://www.pctechguide.com/25mob3.htm
  This web site discusses the origin and evolution of personal digital assistants.
  
  
• Porter, Rebecca. 'Medical records online for all to see?' Association of Trial Lawyers of America 34(13):12-13, 1998 Dec. [LegalTrac]
  This article is about the patient privacy issues using the PalmPilot.
  
  
• Putting Patients First: Comments on Bill C-6 .  Canadian Medical Association. 1999. [http://www.cma.ca/advocacy/political/1999/11-29] access on Oct 16, 2000
  This is Canadian Medical Association official site.  It provides the considerations regarding the patient privacy and confidentiality issue for the medical procession.
  
  
• Robinson, Teri. "Wireless Software Lets Doctors Write Prescriptions On Handhelds." In MicroTimes vol. 210 [online] 2000. Available from http://www.microtimes.com/210/infrobinson210p.html
  This article discusses the drug reaction errors that occur in medical practice and a particular prescription writing software designed for PDAs that reduces this problem.
  
  
• Salvatore, Steve. "Handheld Computers Save Time for Physicians, patients." In CNN [online] 2000. Available from http://www.cnn.com/2000/HEALTH/06/05/hand.held.devices/
  This article discusses some of the benefits of prescription writing software for handheld computers
  
  
• Sandrick, Karen. "Portable Productivity at the Point of Care." Health Management Technology vol(19) issue:8, p.28-32.
  (Available through Proquest Direct)
  An increasingly popular tool for automation in managed care is a wireless point-of-care (POC) computing technology. This article uses examples of Intercommunity and Citrus Valley Medical Centers in West Covina, CA.
  
  
• Siskos, Catherine. "E-prescriptions Mean Fewer Errors in Deciphering the Doctor's Orders and Lower Costs for Patients." In Kiplinger [online] 2000. Available from http://www.kiplinger.com/magazine/archives/2000/August/ahead/e-
  prescriptions.htm
  This article discusses the reduction of errors and benefits of prescription writing software.
  
  
• Ultra-Small Database Management Systems for Handheld and Smart Devices [http://www.cs.colorado.edu/~getrich/Classes/csci5817/Term
  _Papers/jtodd/#Future]
  This site is about database management systems for the palmtop computer.
  
  
• Walsh PJ. 'Wireless technology transforms healthcare delivery and tracking.' MD Computing 17:(2) 45-48, 2000 Apr.
  This paper is about how the wireless technology works in healthcare delivery and tracking.
  
  
• Wang, Jerome K. and Ray Duncan. "Handheld Computers in Residency Training: development of a mobile medical records system." Pediatrics vol(104) issue:3, p.672.
  Research on the development of a prototypic mobile device that allows users to efficiently document, communicate and access important patient information.
  
  
• Zweibel SL. 'Computer Column. . Palmtop computers and the physician.' Pacing & Clinical Electrophysiology 19(5):854-7, 1996 May.
  This is an illustration about palmtop computer, especially the system called PalmVue, used in the physician's routine work.

News Articles

Chin, Tyler. "Lending doctors a hand (held)." American Medical News vol(43) issue:34, p.25.
(Available through Info Trac, Health Reference Center - Academic)

• Baptist Medical Center in Oklahoma is piloting a project, which is offering physicians the ability to download patient data onto their palm-size computers.

• Pharmacy Rx.com Inc. is piloting an online service, which allows doctors to electronically, submit prescriptions at the patient's side.

Gorman C. 'Pocket-size medicine.' Time 1996 Sep 23; 148(15):56.

• A piece of news from Time Magazine about the handheld devices let doctors practice medicine in unusual places.

Lingle, V. A. "Personal digital assistants make inroads into health care." MLA News vol(326) issue: 1, 2000.
Available: http://www.mlanet.org/publications/mlanews/2000/maynews00.html#4 [2000, October,19]

• Discusses two examples of PDAs, which are used in the medical environment, and lists real-world health care applications.

• Med-i-net is launching a new product called pharm-i-net, an electronic prescription pad that automates the prescription-writing process from doctor to pharmacy.

• This article briefly describes the opportunities for doctors to become more efficient with the new line of handhelds available on the market.

• The Health care industry is finding that handheld devices are fast, efficient tools for accessing and collecting data.

• With the support of venture capitalists and Wall Street, many new companies are flooding the market with handheld devices.

ZDNet. "Help & How-To: PDA." In ZDNet [online] 2000. [cited 25 October 2000]; available from http://www.zdwebopedia.com/Portable_Computing/PDA.html

• This web site provides a definition for Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs)

Web site Directory

Duke University Affiliated Physicians: Palm Computing
Available: http://www2.mc.duke.edu/depts/duap/Palm_Computing/palm_computing.html [2000, October 21]

• Palm PDA's for Primary Care. A site, which has examined and filtered through Web sites and information on the following topics: hardware advice, learning basics, Web sites, Internet newsgroup sources, and software essential to start.