iPad's in the Podiatry Clinic

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Press Release:
Dubai Podiatry Centre Becomes the Gulf Region’s First Clinic to Bring Apple iPads to the Healthcare Field

 

Is anyone aware of podiatry apps for the iPad? Would like to have each practitioner with an iPad to do patients notes etc.

 

I not aware of anything podiatry specific, but follow this site for some interesting medical apps:
http://www.imedicalapps.com/

 

What would podiatrist find useful from using an iPad (apart from the 'cool' factor!). ie could you justify the £500 odd outlay for a few nicities?

Some ideas which have been floating around the interweb have included a 3D annotated model of the foot to better explain their problems. Also with more CAD/CAM solutions being adopted having the patients own 3D scan of their foot might be of value when sitting down with them explaining certain features of an orthotic and which parts of their feet it remedies. What I'm basically saying would podiatrist be willing to pay for this luxury and would patients see this as a big selling point for choosing a particular podiatrist?

 

Ridiculous! The iPad maybe great for home/mobile office use and the gadget enthusiast but quite honestly i cannot see any benefit whatsoever for having this or spending that amount of money when the clinic is obviously not the suited environment for its use.

Should any podiatrist need to use visuals then the traditional poster/anatomical models are perfect. Surely the models that use detachable musculature etc are of greater benefit for the hands on approach.

Dont forget our client/patient base, i mean how many of the ageing population judge a good podiatrist on whether they have an ipad?

Again dont see the justification for such outgoings for patients notes?
Am i missing the point?

 

Now that I have got one, its awesome.

There are many apps on it I am running and there will soon be some podatry specific ones.

Stanford Medical School is now giving it to all incoming medical students
The state govt here in Melbourne has purchased 500 for hosiptals for medical staff to use: Victorian hospitals get 500 iPads
There is an explosion of learning tools available for students (mostly medical, but some are applicable to podiatry and there are a lot more on the way)
I just had a play on this one: Haematology MiniAtlas - not totaly relevant to podiatry, but it does give an indication of where this technology can head for podiatry.

Epocrates look awesome, but not used it yet.

I get the latest medical news via the Medscape and MedPage news

Its uses Safari, so I can browse the web and keep on eye on Podiatry Arena.

It syncs with my Outlook Calendar, emails and contacts - and I get the emails pushed to it. I use FeeddlerRSS to sync with my Google Reader for all my RSS feeds. I have Goodreader to read PDF files; I have iBook to read ebooks and AMazon kindle app to read books; I have keynote for my powerpoints. I have DropBox to transfer file between it and my laptop.

(I have even been known to check my emails when stuck in traffic at red lights).

I have installed Skype and can make unlimited calls to landlines anywhere in the the world for $15 month (and record them!)...so its a really big phone (and calls are really clear!)

For daily news I have the newspapers from USA Today, ABC and The Australian.

For my travel I have iPlane PRo and The Weather Channel; I have 500 photos of the arenaette's

For my personal use, I have Google Earth (to look at the neighbours properties); Google Maps, Runners World Magazine, an app to do my banking, eBay app, a few games.

For my enterntainment I have a lot of music; several old black and white sci-fi movies...

The possibilities and applications for the iPad is exploding.

The only problem I have found with it is that I installed Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Scooby Doo, Toy Story book and games and Talking Tom .... I have to battle to get it off the Arena'ettes

 

Okay Craig you've convinced me...I'm getting one...
And if it is used for podiatry apps, then I guess it's a tax deduction also?

 

Nat - I have the 3g version so I can access the web outside wireless networks. I have a wireless network at home, at Uni, at airports, in hotels, at the wife's clinic and at McDonalds - I need the 3g connection elsewhere (I have a lowest plan at Optus for $20/month, as it is mostly used at wireless locations). Others I work with do not have the 3g version and only use it in wireless zones (home and work).

There is no doubt there will be more applications appilicable to podiatry soon. I even raised with the boss about us considering its potential as a teaching tool with the students..

 

I can see that being really important igs:

I just can visualise CP in the playground at McDonalds with the Arena'ette's running wild and he is on his iPad dealing with a riot on Podiatry Arena; responding to student emails; and watching a movie; (probably all at the same time!) :hammer:

 

Nah! I am a bloke, only girls are supposed to be able to multitask at the same time.

 

I just installed VisualDx, a dermatology app .... awesome; but after the free trial, it is $119/yr!

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/visualdx/id348177521?mt=8

 

Blue123 I guess that question can only be answered by the practitioner using the ipad. I would imagine that if 99% of your business is elderley patients coming in for nail cutting & a bit of HK reduction then an ipad would unlikely be a good investment for your practice. On the other hand if you have a much more diverse business and have a lot of biomechanical / sports injuries / wounds / dermatological pathologies to manage and a younger client demographic then ipad may be a very practical and cost effective addition to the business. It obviously also depends on the practitioner and whether they embrace technology or are a bit technophobic.

 

i totally agree that a more diverse practice requires greater need for such equipment however i have a practice that is 75 percent biomech/sports injuries working with professional footballers and the club sports scientists and i still do not believe this would benefit myself or my patients. I believe it is a fun/cool/practical item for the home office etc but not for clinical use, my practice embraces technology where it is needed and not just because it is available or to keep up with what the media or 'society' tells us we should have.

 

hmmm...sounds rather like the Encarta CD rom that I bought to help my children understand human biology many years ago? I remember being able to show them around an eyeball and a knee joint etc...anyone remember this?

 

Craig,

When can we expect a Podiatry Arena app??? Would make my life so much easier...

 

How does one clean an iPad to clinical standards? Would it be acceptable to use an alcohol-based solution?

I ask not to be facetious, but because I am genuinely interested in whether such an item of technology could play a role in the healthcare setting.

 

External case + screen protectors.....

Easy to clean and any cleaning products never touch the iPad. I like Craig have the 3G version but am finding my iPhone 4 to be just as versatile as the iPad for my daily regimes. Reading magazines/Books and email websurfing is amazing on the iPad though. Our staff use them for the PORTAL Education website and are currently making all of our content iPhone and iPad compatible (HTML 5 compatible generally).

Nice piece of equipment.

I have Podiatry Arena saved as shortcut on the iPad desktop - the forums are easy to read through Safari or Atomic Web Browser and the only thing missing is some flash content occasionally which is mostly advertising.

 

Is this becoming a wikipedia style knowledge base? Is most of the content for staff training or have you found alot of the content useful for advising patients on self care? Its great how you've taken the initiative with devising your own apps and resources.

 

Seeing Blackberry at the bottom of this list does not surprise me. I have recently switched to one after having had an iPhone since November 2007. On the 2 days a week I commute to London I often spend the entire trip on Pod Arena on my phone. This experience on the Blackberry is seriously painful compared to the iPhone.

 

Like Craig, I find the iPad wonderful for both personal & business use (& yes, kids love it!). If I am travelling for just a few days I can just take the iPad & dispense with the heavier laptop - full (& quick) internet access for emails, calendar, internet banking etc.

It is particularly useful for anatomical demonstrations for patients - like a chart on the wall but interactive and has the benefit of mobility. Check out iMed Sliders Foot - iFans can download it from iTunes, iVirgins can check it out on http://appshopper.com/medical/imed-sliders-foot is minimal cost (few dollars I think) and has a dorsal or plantar view of the foot which you can dissect by removing layers - skin, lat & med pl fascia & fat pad, plantar aponeurosis, sheaths of flex tendons etc etc, you can slide in layers of nerves, cutaneous innervation, blood vessels etc

There are obvious benefits for assisting with patient education in a clinical setting

Just waiting for the pod-arena iPad app....

Jayne

 

How is this for being geeky? I am on an American Airlines flight from Toronto to LAX. For the 5 hr flight it's $9 for wi-fi access!!!! ..... I on the iPad, finally getting to markings all the students assignments!!!!!

 

I just got one ...

 

I got mine about two weeks ago. I love it!
Check out iannotate app and drop box apps for cataloging and marking up papers.
Great apps!
Bruce

 

Have been thinking about employing an IPad for my home visits to make appointments, write letters etc. on the run.

What is the appointment/calendar app like? Is it able to rebook appointments? Is it easy to use? Would it be suitable for patient bookings?

Thanks

 

I too would love some info on some ipad apps for a similar purpose. Is there such an app for 'mail merging'. How great would it be to write up a letter and send to the GP all before turning on your ignition!

 

There are some apps that come close to doing that, but it is somewhat "clumsy" using iPad for correspondance.

I see Clear Practice have come out with an iPad app for Electonic Medical Records:
http://www.imedicalapps.com/2010/11...irst-real-high-powered-ehr-running-on-an-ipad

 

the Nimble EMR app looks very comprehensive & user friendly but at $399 or $499 per practitioner, per month, it is a bit pricey!. Not sure many practices would adopt tablet apps as their only EMR system just yet but I do believe the time is coming.

Anyone else found any good medical iPad apps? esp anatomical patient education ones?

 

Hi,
Would like to get some feedback from anyone who has used an IPad for appointment bookings? I know this question was asked before but noy sure if e got an answer.

 

No, no one got around to answering my question, so I got off my butt and went down to JB HiFi and had a play. I personally do not think the calendar that comes standard with the iPad is appropriate. Sure you can put in one off appointments but you can not rebook / reschedule an appointment from an existing appointment, a must in my opinion. I still plan on getting an iPad for Christmas (I have been good Santa I promise) :santa: but I will be investing in an EMR app.

Cheers

 

Thanks Stirling. I kind of suspected as much. I agree it would be good to have one though. I like the portability of it and it does have some potential for clinical applications as well.

 

Having read Newsbots original post, I decided to email Michelle to ask exactly what applications she's using and how she actually integrates the iPad into her consultations, but to date, there's been no reply, not even an acknowledgement of receiving the email.

 

I've invested in one too now and am just getting to grips with it. Regarding the calendar for booking patients, it really isn't good enough, but I use PPS from Rushcliff and they do PPS remote which I'm just about to trial. It gives you access to your clinic diary, enables you to book or change appointments, but doesn't give you access to detailed consultation notes. Seems ideal for practitioners who are out and about in more than one clinic.

 

I've been a "Mac" person from the beginning and use them in the office as well as at home.
The iPad is another matter. It is not a computer.
I looked at them for the office, but, unless someone knows something I don't, there is no way to get info on the iPad other than downloading from a WiFi connection.

So, for instance, if a patient comes with their MRI scan on a DVD, how do you get it on the iPad?

There is just recently an App for even Printing over a WiFi printer connection, otherwise you cannot print. For another couple hundred I can get an iBook.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

Steve

 

I've been wondering exactly the same thing, my patients also bring their x-rays etc on CD/DVD, but it does state in the original posting on this thread that Michelle of the Dubai Podiatry clinic is using the iPad for viewing x-rays...

"With its ten hour battery life, Michelle Champlin, CEO and Chief Podiatrist of Dubai Podiatry Centre, thinks the iPad will replace the laptop for everyday office applications such as email, and also for checking X-ray images."

 

Only way I can see this being feasible is if the X-rays were emailed directly to you, or if you connected to the diagnostic centre's network via wi-fi and viewed them off the server directly.

For patients coming in with their diagnostic imaging on a 3rd party CD-ROM the iPad isn't going to be much use.

 

I agree.

When I was looking at it at the Apple store the salesperson kept saying "it's not a computer" -
OK, it's not a computer.
Even if someone were to e-mail images, you're not going to e-mail an entire MRI study in DICOM format, plus there would be no software to open it.

If you have a simple digital plain X ray in , say, JPEG format I guess you could WiFi it to an iPAD.

Steve

Steve

 

would a file transfer thingy like Dropbox work?

 

Comparison of Six Mobile Medical Reference Apps: Epocrates, Lexi-Comp, Medscape, Micromedex, Pepid, Skyscape

 

Yes. I use drop box a lot between computers and the iPad