Wednesday, September 22, 2004

Majority of Physicians use PDAs

64% of respondents on a recent survey of physicians say they use personal digital assistants at their primary treatment facility. The survey of 453 outpatient organizations shows that physicians use PDAs to, among many other things, obtain drug reference information, manage scheduling, capture charges, perform dictation, access electronic medical records and write electronic prescriptions. Full Story

Tuesday, September 21, 2004

More PDAs not available in the U.S.

In a single day, both Sony and Toshiba announced new models that won't be available in the United States, while just recently Sony announced their Sony Clie PEG-VZ90 won't be available outside of Japan.
None of these companies have given reasons why they have decided to not release models in the U.S. The theory that is most often expressed to explain it is that the U.S. handheld market is dominated by three companies, squeezing out smaller competitors. LINK

PDA Back to School Sale

While PDA use is growing in different sectors of education, most medical schools require their students to purchase a PDA device. This gives the perfect opportunity to companies such as palmONE who recently announced a back-to-school offer now through Oct. 30. With the purchase of 30 Tungsten E handhelds, educators will receive an additional three Tungsten E handhelds, a special eBundle of software and accessories valued at more than $800, and a Software and Utilities Bonus Pack featuring more than $4,000 worth of software and utilities discounts (while supplies last). LINK

Vitals on the Go

In eight outpatient clinics within Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital, nurses are now using PDAs to enter data, such as their patient's vital signs and where on a person's body a blood pressure reading was taken from. This information is then sent automatically via their device to the hospital's electronic medical records system. The wireless PDAs are attached to wheeling IV poles outfitted with monitors. Before implementing the system, less than 10% of patient blood pressure data was available in data form in the electronic records system. LINK

Docs Ahead of Pack in PDA Use

Physicians are four times more likely as other consumers to own PDAs, according to a new report from Forrester Research Inc., which found that 45% of North American physicians own PDAs, compared with 11% of the general population. The numbers aren't suprising seeing as PDAs are now must-haves for medical students and residents. LINK