Technology In Motion

Every day I step from my seventh floor apartment into the warm South Florida sun and drive in the astoundingly frustrating Miami traffic to get to “my” health care system.  This is the place where an old geek like myself still has usefulness in the world that has become healthcare Information Technology.  Many of my friends are in this traffic with me, some of them are nurses and some are doctors, some housekeeping, and some technicians of various stripe, from radiology to computer.  All of us with one common mission – to provide world class health care to our community.

I however, am not clinical.  I am a geek.  When I walk these halls I am looking for ways to make the crucial and difficult job performed by the clinical staff easier and more efficient.  As the compliance issues become more complicated and the code names more prolific.  We walk the halls, put in the meetings, and work on the problems from our desks.  Information Technology is adapting … quickly.  Nevertheless – we who know and love I.T. are growing our skill sets exponentially and still not getting ahead of the curve.  Why?

Because health care is changing but the computer technology we are using to assist our medical providers is still locked in the age of the box.  Manufacturers, who arguably deserve to make money, are struggling to catch up with the technology they use to mold their market.  In healthcare I.T. in addition to networks, servers, storage, and operating systems, I find myself trying to find solutions that don’t exist. 

The current case has to do with a code name “Advanced Directives”.  This caused a series of meetings trying to find a technological answer to scanning documents into the EMAR, obtaining electronic signatures for authorization, and potentially collect copays.  The solution is best provided in a mobile configuration.   However, by the time you put a mobile computer cart, with lithium battery, into service in this roll – it looks more like an interplanetary research probe than a computer cart.  It is outfitted with a computer, we use a tiny (or mini) form factor device, a 22” monitor, a document scanner, a wireless hand scanner for 2d and 3d bar codes, and a digital signature pad.  Battery life with these devices installed is roughly 15 minutes.  Yet all of this could be accomplished with a tablet, however the tablet needs to be medical specific.

Why can I buy a drill with a quick change battery but I can’t get a tablet with one? 

Scanning can be done with the tablet’s integral camera, I have a scanning app on my phone that works quickly and easily.  2d and 3d scanners are already available on some tablet cases. 

If we who are in healthcare I.T. speak with one voice maybe we can get the manufacturers to step up and start custom building designs that make sense for us.  For fun I have attached a design I sketched this morning, maybe you can see the need for something like this in your organization. 

Here’s the thing, if I ask for it there is no profit for the manufacturers, but if WE ask for it they will be able to see how they can profit.

Think about it.  Take a look, maybe you’ll agree.