mHealth Summit Q&A: BlackBerry

How to you gauge the mobile healthcare market now?
There is consistency in the technology requirements of different healthcare markets, whether the NHS in the UK or healthcare globally. The requirement for long-term preventative care is uniform, and this is where mobile technology can play a role in patient monitoring and healthcare provision. NHS organisations recognise that with the BES platform they have a scalable and secure platform upon which they can mobilise systems.

Has there been change in how the health industry has responded to technology?
RIM has been approached frequently by healthcare suppliers and vendors in the past 18 months to investigate how they can run applications. GPS can be used to establish what medical professionals are best placed to deal with in emergencies. NHS customers recognise mobile is a key enabler for better healthcare. Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust has implemented a solution to enable midwives to fill out forms using digital pens and BlackBerry handsets. It has reduced administration time and form-filling errors, and also removed the risk of litigation from record loss.

How will the market develop through next year?
We’ll see significant adoption of mobile healthcare solutions. RIM is already established and we will encourage customers to leverage their investment in BlackBerry to deliver secure mobile applications to health professionals for improvements in service delivery and operational efficiency. Many more organisations will realise they can do more with their existing technology so professionals will have increasing ways to access patient information. The range of applications available with BlackBerry is expanding rapidly.

How important is security?
Security is a highly emotive topic. BES has been built with security in mind and it has been approved for storing and transmitting sensitive data by Government security organisations worldwide. It allows each device a secure connection that goes to the server – if a device is lost or stolen it can be wiped remotely and disconnected from system.

What challenges does the sector face?
Budget constraints and efficiency drives, coupled with a growing population that has a longer life expectancy. Mobile technology is important for healthcare providers looking to overcome these challenges whilst offering better healthcare provision to patients. An important challenge for the industry is to encourage professionals and patients to embrace technology, and for vendors to prove return on investment. Mobile solutions that offer a consistent and reliable experience to users whilst delivering the operational objectives of the healthcare provider will succeed.