Tablets such as the iPad are all set to revolutionize the way each and every one of us receives healthcare.
Tablets have several advantages vis-a-vis a PC. These include
1. A sleek touch-screen interface that allows for quick navigation. In addition, the tablet is always "on" whereas it takes at least several seconds to switch on a laptop. General practitioners, typically see patients within 3 minutes. For these doctors every second counts and only a tablet can provide the speed they need.
2. Extreme portability. The iPad is the size of a small file that can easily be carried from place to place.
3. Thousands of apps that perform simple functions very efficiently.
4. Similarity to Smartphones. Smartphones are becoming more and more prevalent and within a few years we will find that most new phones are touch-screen capable. Someone who's used a Smartphone will find it easy to make the switch to a tablet even though they might not have used a tablet before.
As against the pros the cons of tablets are few with high cost and slow processing power being the main ones. With tablets out in the market for only about a year costs will rapidly decrease.
So how will tablets help everyone get better care
1. Get better information from your healthcare provider. Doctors will be able to show you videos and images details about your illness. Say you are going in for a cataract operation. The doctor could show you how the surgery is performed and why it is very safe.
2. Provide better input to your healthcare provider. Say you've had a spinal surgery and are going to meet the specialist for a follow-up. While you wait to see the specialist you could be completing form and diagrams which indicate the amount of discomfiture you are in. The specialist would use this information to track your recovery over a period of time.
3. Your healthcare provider will have all your relevant medical information available at his/her fingertips. This to me is by far the biggest benefit of using tablets. Say you have an injury playing football. You get an X-ray done and then go to see your doctor. When you see the doctor, he/she will have not just your X-ray but a history of all the injuries you've had before, any other illnesses you currently have, your allergies, the prescriptions you currently take etc. All this on a tablet to ensure that you get the best care possible.
That day is not too far........
Tablets have several advantages vis-a-vis a PC. These include
1. A sleek touch-screen interface that allows for quick navigation. In addition, the tablet is always "on" whereas it takes at least several seconds to switch on a laptop. General practitioners, typically see patients within 3 minutes. For these doctors every second counts and only a tablet can provide the speed they need.
2. Extreme portability. The iPad is the size of a small file that can easily be carried from place to place.
3. Thousands of apps that perform simple functions very efficiently.
4. Similarity to Smartphones. Smartphones are becoming more and more prevalent and within a few years we will find that most new phones are touch-screen capable. Someone who's used a Smartphone will find it easy to make the switch to a tablet even though they might not have used a tablet before.
As against the pros the cons of tablets are few with high cost and slow processing power being the main ones. With tablets out in the market for only about a year costs will rapidly decrease.
So how will tablets help everyone get better care
1. Get better information from your healthcare provider. Doctors will be able to show you videos and images details about your illness. Say you are going in for a cataract operation. The doctor could show you how the surgery is performed and why it is very safe.
2. Provide better input to your healthcare provider. Say you've had a spinal surgery and are going to meet the specialist for a follow-up. While you wait to see the specialist you could be completing form and diagrams which indicate the amount of discomfiture you are in. The specialist would use this information to track your recovery over a period of time.
3. Your healthcare provider will have all your relevant medical information available at his/her fingertips. This to me is by far the biggest benefit of using tablets. Say you have an injury playing football. You get an X-ray done and then go to see your doctor. When you see the doctor, he/she will have not just your X-ray but a history of all the injuries you've had before, any other illnesses you currently have, your allergies, the prescriptions you currently take etc. All this on a tablet to ensure that you get the best care possible.
That day is not too far........
