Kalorama finds in 2011 that hospitals got used to handheld technology in their daily workflow. Several factors are driving the growth of this market including a growing and aging population, shortage of qualified medical professionals, cost restraints, medical error reduction measures, government incentives, expanding capabilities of devices, off-site medical care and more.
Barriers in adopting new technologies include: access, cost, suspicion of its effectiveness, and a lack of confidence from new operators. However, record numbers of the general public are buying new handheld technologies from developers such as Samsung, HTC, and Apple. Buyers are purchasing smartphones and tablets for their own personal use, which provides a basis for implementing related technology in a work setting, such as a hospital. Not only are hospital personnel becoming more confident with new devices, more than half of hospital staff already have devices that can operate FDA-approved and HIPPA-compliant software.
One healthcare group, Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) reported in February 2012 that it would be continuing to invest in AirStrip Technologies, a mobile healthcare access provider. Airstrip offers physicians the technology to access real-time patient data on mobile devices, including the iPhone and Android devices.
As a whole, the healthcare industry is facing intense pressure to improve quality, control costs, and meet ever-changing government requirements. To meet these challenges, many health facilities are focusing on improving their workflow and restructuring their information system infrastructure. This Kalorama report takes a closer look at this growing opportunity and emerging technologies developed to meet new demands.
The newly updated report, Handhelds in Healthcare, addresses the growing market for handheld device markets in healthcare settings. For information or to order this report, please see http://www.kaloramainformation.com/Handhelds-Healthcare-Smartphones-6789230/
