A mobile revolution in healthcare?

It might seem audacious to say so, but India’s medical services and healthcare market is fairly unorganised when looked at from the perspective of the patient/consumer. Ask any average Indian for a medical record and history of major illnesses and you’ll get the last three prescriptions for the common cold and fuzzy timelines for when they had jaundice, malaria or the measles.

Documentation on known food or drug allergies is non-existent except in the patient’s memory and the concept of electronic health records (EHR) hasn’t made a dent in India yet. This, combined with India’s vast expanse and lack of last mile penetration of healthcare services, has compounded the problem greatly.

The lack of doctors and clinicians is creating increased pressure on the medical system. As a result, doctors are also seeking ways to be at many places at the same time. They want something that will improve their relationship with their patients, enhance doctor-patient communication and improve the quality of care.

As complex as the problem is, the solution is fast becoming quite simple. India is the largest wireless market in the world after China and so, healthcare delivery over the mobile phone seems to be an obvious answer to a lot of these issues.

Cloud consulting Imagine a system that allowed hospitals and doctors to acquire, store, process, and secure patient data on the cloud, made accessible through a simple mobile interface. Companies such as Max Healthcare are already doing this in India. With an application that securely connects an archive of medical information like radiology images, lab reports and patient charts with smartphones that clinicians can access wherever they are, Max Healthcare is not only slashing turnaround time and treating more patients, it is saving lives. A critical aspect of patient care, however, is being able to capture clinical information at the point of care. Solutions such as AppMobilizer can allow doctors to enter patient care information directly into the various health assessment forms; that data is then transferred to a back-end database for reporting and billing purposes.

Taking this one step further are smartphone apps that are able to serve as clinical calculators and decision-support tools helping prognosis, guiding treatment and dosage. Other apps are created to serve as databases of reference materials or even ECG guides, eliminating the need to carry around EKG cards.

Connecting better For patients, medical apps offer the opportunity to monitor health and encourage patient wellness on a moment-to-moment basis. For example, breast-cancer patients can use an app to enter and track details of their disease and treatment, from the size of the tumour to the presence or absence of estrogen receptors.

Glucose tracking apps can help diabetics monitor their consumption and keep track of any spikes in blood sugar. This direct link between the doctor and patient makes consumers more confident and hence better patients, and doctors more available.

Apps aside, mobile technologies like near field communication have great potential use once electronic health records become more mainstream. Imagine doctors and nurses who move from one patient to another being able to tap a smartphone against a tag, and the relevant, recent page of that patient’s record pops up on screen.

In India, mobile technology can play a basic, yet significant role in bringing healthcare to the masses.

(The writer is the Director for Business Development & Alliances at BlackBerry India)

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