Wearable devices are the future. Or to be clearer, they represent the next generation of personally-oriented computers after the current smartphones and tablets, which came after laptops, which came after PCs, etc.
But what types of wearable devices will we see, and what formats will be successful?
The Google Glass is certainly a good candidate for the type that records what you see and overlays information into your visual field. The device is expected to be available to consumers in 2014.
But what types of wearable devices will we see, and what formats will be successful?
The Google Glass is certainly a good candidate for the type that records what you see and overlays information into your visual field. The device is expected to be available to consumers in 2014.
Credit: Google via CNET
Meanwhile, Google is encouraging people to think of applications for the device:
"We’re looking for bold, creative individuals who want to join us and be a part of shaping the future of Glass… We’re still in the early stages, and while we can’t promise everything will be perfect, we can promise it will be exciting.”
If you have not seen it, the new Glass video gives you a sense of what it can do:
But can it provide a platform for mobile healthcare apps? Certainly there is no suggestion in the current ‘What it does’ examples from Google.
As with most apps, we have to consider who the end user will be. It seems that healthcare workers, especially physicians, could benefit greatly.
Recently, Apple created a dedicated ‘Apps for Healthcare Professionals’ collection so you can get a sense of the applications that are available for smartphones and tablets:
As with most apps, we have to consider who the end user will be. It seems that healthcare workers, especially physicians, could benefit greatly.
Recently, Apple created a dedicated ‘Apps for Healthcare Professionals’ collection so you can get a sense of the applications that are available for smartphones and tablets:
Electronic Medical Records (EMR) and Patient Monitoring apps strike me as an ideal initial target for Glass. Currently, when I visit my physician he has a binder of past paper records delivered to the examining room, but also pulls up my information on a desktop computer – so a hybrid environment of EMR/EHR and paper. He typically consults these while alternately looking at me. Having the information displayed in his visual field automatically would leave both his hands free and let him observe me more.
Medical advances are happening so quickly that it is very hard for physicians to keep up to date. A ready reference source would be very helpful:
Medical advances are happening so quickly that it is very hard for physicians to keep up to date. A ready reference source would be very helpful:
Recently, IBM released a commercially available version of its AI Watson developed with the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and trained to assist with cancer diagnosis.
"Watson’s program, called “Interactive Care Insights for Oncology,” will produce answers to doctors’ queries in the same way Watson answered questions from contestants during its victorious run on Jeopardy!, by producing an extensively cross-referenced series of answers, and assigning a confidence score to each answer. It needs only seconds to comb through decades-long cancer treatment histories of 1,500 patients and suggest a treatment. From there, it’s up to the doctor to decide."
Google shows some Glass examples of voice search calls to their search engine. A physician requested query that gives prioritized treatment recommendations would be very powerful.
Credit: IBM via flickr
Clearly there are many more implications that I shall explore in future posts.
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