Healthcare providers in the U.S. face a three-pronged
deluge of demands from patients, insurance companies, and the government. To
successfully address these new and evolving expectations, members of the
medical sector must leverage the capabilities of new wireless technologies – or
fall behind their more savvy competitors.

The healthcare sector has never been known for being an
early adopter of information technology. However, now there are innovative,
powerful mobile devices that must be recognized as absolutely key to expanding
and improving patient care, to controlling costs, and to complying with
regulatory mandates,” said Jeanine Sterling, senior industry analyst, Frost
& Sullivan.

Smartphone penetration among U.S. healthcare providers
continues to surge, and understandably so. As these devices have become more
powerful and convenient, their assortment of medical software applications has
grown.

Caregivers can now use their smartphones to easily access
medical reference libraries, view lab results, monitor patient vitals, and
access patient electronic health records (EHR).

A second device category today’s next-generation tablets
is now taking these capabilities and magnifying their usefulness with the aid
of larger screens, high-resolution displays, and dual cameras.

Even the familiar push-to-talk devices are augmenting
their instant voice communications benefit with new form factors and an array
of new capabilities, providing needed functionality in multiple scenarios,
including the emergency room and in natural disaster situations.

And, lastly, M2M remote monitoring devices are starting
to bridge the geographic gap between healthcare providers and patients who find
it difficult to make in-person office visits.

In addition to supporting patients with chronic
conditions, M2M technology is being used for personal wellness monitoring and
for helping elderly or at-risk individuals to live independently. M2M is
improving outcomes and cutting expense a win-win combination of benefits that
few can afford to ignore.

Mobile technology promises to transform healthcare. It
all begins with the mobile device, and vendors are working hard to tempt
healthcare providers with a broad, and often bewildering, set of choices.
Different types of medical staff will have different information and
communications needs.

We discuss the criteria to consider when selecting the
optimal device(s) and mobility partner. And we offer Sprint as an example of an
end-to-end mobile solution provider that has done the due diligence and assembled
a top-tier portfolio of solutions and partners,” added Sterling.

By Telecomlead.com Team
[email protected]