iPad: The New 'Scalpel' and 'Eyes' of the Operating Room

Over the past decade, virtually every major industry invested heavily in computerization. The heath care industry was no exception to the rise in the use of technology. These technologies are starting to allow health care practitioners to offer faster, and more efficient patient care than ever before. No doubt this is the right direction we expect health care to follow.

As consumers utilize smartphones, tablets, and other devices for other functions like social media and email, they are starting to look at these features to assist them with their healthcare. Mobile body area network devices will be a growing trend in the coming years as a way to get patients engaged in their healthcare and also to give providers routine updates on the status of patients with chronic conditions. As DeGaspari (2014) indicates, these devices can lead to improved functionality for other devices used in hospitals, such as sensors for monitoring patients that might get up and wander or be a fall risk. Telemedicine will continue to grow as payers, providers, and patients all start to realize the mutual benefits that can be

The emergency department in the modern hospital is one of the most complex clinical settings to operate. According to Johnson, Sensei, & Capasso (2012), this department is an intersection of the diagnosis and treatment of emergency cases. As a result, it experiences immense volumes of patients every day. However, in most hospitals, patients visit the facilities with an indication of what they might be suffering from. Specifically, they use their iPhones to get a list of conditions that they might be having (Boncana, 2016). This method of detection has come to be known as mHealth. In this regard, mHealth, rather mobile health, is a method that patients use to enhance their health and medical practices via the use of mobile technology. The cell phones used in this approach are equipped with medical/health software, a personal digital assistant (PDA), and patient monitoring devices.

Mhealth has reached the poorest of communities (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, n.d.). More than 9 million patients email their physician in 2009 (Digital Health Care, 2010), because patients’ busy lifestyles do not allow time for an office visit for non-emergent health conditions. . In recent years, the expansion of mobile health (mhealth) technologies, including health text messaging, mobile phone applications, remote monitoring, and portable sensors, have changed the way health care is being delivered in the U.S. and globally (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, n.d.). Patients like the convenience of communicating with his or her physician through advanced technology.

The centralized point for the patient information is an integral segment of the clinical transformation. Once an office has transfer from paper-based records to the electronic, he or she will make the records more accessible and easy to obtain through the Tablet PC. With a Tablet PC, doctors along with other medical staff can update a patient's record even when he or she is away from his or her workstation. The Tablet PC will increase the doctor's mobility because; he or she will be able to access the information virtually anywhere, which they would not have to depend on the nurses to pull the charts.

……A recent survey by Kluwer Kluwer Health’s Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 71% of nurses are using smartphones for their job. It’s becoming the norm in the nursing workplace nowadays and the range of phone apps are moving beyond leisure. It’s not an exaggeration to say that smartphones are moving the nursing practice into a much greater height. From drug references, medication interaction disease, laboratory and safety information, nurses have access to all kinds of data to help them improve patient care.

Unfortunately, along with the good must come the bad. For every positive aspect of smartphones and social media in healthcare related settings, there is an equally negative aspect. One pitfall of smartphones in healthcare is directly related to one of the positive aspects of smartphones: the availability of medical

In today’s hospital environment, our main focus is placed on technology, medications and treating a diagnosis. Often patients are wheeled from one examination to another with little personal interaction received from their healthcare provider. Patients are hooked up to monitors alarming endlessly due to staff being either unavailable to silence them or not having the compassion to comfort. Technology has become so dominant in hospital settings that we have lost sight of providing the

A large, local hospital has requested consulting assistance with a technical research and specification project related to the selection of a tablet device for use in their medical practice. This tablet will be used by personnel for medical and administrative purposes throughout the hospital.

The Da Vinci Surgical System is a large purpose-built robot controlled by a surgeon that performs minimally invasive surgical procedures on patients. The system incorporates an ergonomically designed surgeon's console, a patient-side module with four interactive robotic arms, each with interchangeable surgical instruments and a 3-dimensional endoscopic vision system. Powered by high-tech supercomputers, the surgeon's hand movements are scaled, filtered and then converted into precise movements of the surgical attachments. The designers of the system are a team of doctors, engineers and biomedical engineers at a company called Intuitive Surgical.

The health care industry has become increasingly reliant on technology. From medical translation tools to mobile apps, these devices are helping healthcare institutions save money and improve patient treatment.

In observation, (Fahnestock, McComb, & Deshmukh, 2013) stated "Information technologies are transforming the way healthcare is delivered. Innovations such as computer-based patient records, hospital information systems, computer-based decision support tools, community health information networks and new ways of distributing health information.” (p.3.2). In the sector of delivering healthcare using technology, has made it easier for healthcare professionals to access medical records, digitization of prescriptions and view test results. With the use of high-performance devices being used in the hospital, helps to make the jobs of healthcare professionals a little easier. As well as relieve anxiety from anxious patients that may be awaiting lab results to come back. Therefore, IT devices and services has been and continues to be a tremendous help and game changer for the healthcare system. However, there is still a lot of work to be done to help shape and reform the healthcare

In the hectic and harried environment of a hospital, a nurse or technician does not have to search for an available workstation when they can pull up an individual chart on their tablet. Medical personnel can expect to access medical records more frequently and faster than traditional paper and folder charting models. “Location no longer creates a barricade to patient data. Role-based roaming and printing means better access to records from multiple locations. Many different devices, such as tablets and mobile phones, are supported.” 3

The practice of using mobile devices in healthcare is growing. More than half -- 51% -- of physicians use tablets for professional purposes and 74% use smartphones at work. The mobile monitoring and diagnostic medical devices market will reach $8.03 billion by 2019, compared with a mere $0.65 billion in 2013.

The medical field has revolutionized the health and well being of society. Throughout the decades, the medical field has been through sweeping changes that leave society astonished. It seems like each year that passes by, there is a new technological advancement that modernizes the medical field. Not only do these advancements modernize medicine, but they in return aid doctors, nurses, and specialists by improving their effectiveness within the field. About ten years ago, the da Vinci Surgical System was introduced to hospitals and the medical field, in general because the FDA had finally approved the system within the United States (Dunkin). The da Vinci Surgical System, also known basically as robotic surgery, introduced the use of a