Data management – Top 10 apps set to change health care
June 07, 2016
The notion that commercial technology is leagues ahead of the stuff being used in hospitals is certainly nothing new. Historically, health care facilities have been reluctant to embrace change — and even if they did change, and even in an era where value is king — the regulatory waters around new technology can be murky. While the FDA has been hard at work writing the rules for medical apps, interest in these free or low-cost tools has skyrocketed. According to a report last year from Kalorama Information, the mobile health apps market was estimated at close to $500 million for 2015 — up from just $85 million in 2010. That analysis projects the health care app market will become a $1.7 billion industry by 2020.
Of the 1.4 million apps used through Apple’s operating systems, more than 18,000 are for medical applications, and that doesn’t count another 10,000 apps listed as “health and fitness apps.” By comparison, the Google Play Store, which is the Android platform marketplace, boasts about 1.5 million apps, of which about 2 percent are focused on medical, health and fitness categories.
In April, HealthCare Business News asked its readers to share with us their favorite health apps or the ones they are most excited about. Based on that feedback, as well as some internal discussions and research, we have selected 10 apps that deserve to stand out from the crowd.
Name: AirStrip ONE
Produced by: AirStrip
Price: Free
OS: Apple / Android
AirStrip has been dealing in the medical app market for over a decade, and with AirStrip ONE it aims to create a complete enterprise solution. By connecting the AirStrip ONE platform and application to a health system's existing EMR, cardiology and patient monitor products, AirStrip ONE provides a complete infrastructure for clinical mobility. Designed to be vendor-agnostic, the beauty of AirStrip ONE is that it opens up the possibility that physicians will be able to access whatever relevant information they need from the patient record just as easily as they would pull up a website. It is also cleared by the FDA for use as a diagnostic aid, so users can be confident that the data displayed is reliable.
Name: My Baby’s Beat
Produced by: Matis Inc.
Price: $4.99
OS: Android and Apple
My Baby’s Beat, which monitors a fetus’ heartbeat during pregnancy, was one that several readers submitted. The app simply uses the device’s microphone, with no accessory required, to pick up the heartbeat and make it loud enough to hear. This is one of the highest ranked and downloaded paid medical apps available on Apple’s App Store. While this fetal stethoscope is geared toward mothers instead of physicians — complete with record and share functions — the device still manages to bring key vital signs to the forefront.
Name: ACC’s Statin Intolerance App
Produced by: American College of Cardiology
Price: Free
OS: Apple and Android
The handy ACC Statin Intolerance App guides clinicians through the process of managing and treating patients who report muscle symptoms while on statin therapy. Clinicians use the app to answer questions and to evaluate possible intolerance to a patient’s current statin prescription, or follow steps to manage and treat a patient who reports muscle symptoms on a statin, or compare statin characteristics and drug interactions to inform patient management. The app bases its instructions on information and recommendations from the 2013 ACC/AHA Guideline on the Treatment of Blood Cholesterol to Reduce Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Risk in Adults, and the prescribing information for each statin.
Name: MAQ12 Anticoagulation Toolkit
Produced by: University of Michigan
Price: Free
OS: Apple
An up-to-date, easy-to-use resource for managing anticoagulation patients more safely and effectively, the MAQ12 is another free app that stands to help physicians make more confident treatment decisions. The content was developed by the Michigan Anticoagulation Quality Improvement Initiative (MAQI2), a Blue Cross Blue Shield/Blue Care network, which is a consortium of anticoagulation clinics and experts from across the state of Michigan, and is based on the latest guidelines and research. Although the app is intended for informational purposes, the developers say that it is not to be taken as actual medical advice. Instead, the toolkit is intended to educate users so that they can make better-informed decisions when evaluating real-life anticoagulation scenarios.
Name: RMD Finder
Produced by: Tarun Kotia
Price: Free
OS: Apple
CRMD Finder helps to solve a specific problem: trying to identify a patient’s cardiac rhythm management devices (CRMDs) such as pacemakers and ICDs simply by looking at the patient’s X-ray. Like many of the “doctor’s helper” apps on the market, this one does not depend on automation, but rather takes the user through a few questions to help ascertain the make and model of the patient’s implant.
It is estimated that as many as 60 different CRMD device types exist from at least five manufacturers. As the population ages and more people are getting access to care, the rate of implants is on the rise. For physicians treating a patient without a record of the exact type of device, CRMD Finder may unlock the answer.
Name: Lumify
Produced by: Philips Healthcare
Price: Free (subscription)
OS: Android
Lumify is not technically a stand-alone app, but an app-based ultrasound system deserves a spot on this year’s list. By inserting a transducer into an Android charge port, a smart device can become capable of performing ultrasound. The subscription service is being developed and Philips hopes to create a highly customizable catalogue of Lumify apps, such as one for automatic bladder volume calculations, for users to choose from, based on their own imaging needs. Two transducers are currently offered, including one for abdominal and obstruction imaging and another for vascular, thyroid and breast imaging. Although Lumify may add credence to the notion that ultrasound will displace the stethoscope, the real potential for app-based ultrasound to improve care may be in bringing access to rural patient populations.
Name: Quick ICD 10
Produced by: Nth Technologies
Price: Free
OS: Apple, Android
Like the popular translation apps that help people travel in countries where they don’t speak the language, Quick ICD 10 offers a simple and quick way to search and convert ICD 9 codes to
ICD 10 codes and back. The app allows users to search codes numerically or by description and, to speed up the process of redoing the same conversion, it remembers searches and allows the user to bookmark “favorite” codes.
Name: UpToDate
Produced by: UpToDate Inc.
Price: $499 a year for an individual physician
OS: Apple, Android
Since 1982, UpToDate has been linking health care professionals with evidence-based resources. The service offers more than 9,000 evidence-based and graded recommendations as well as more than 140 medical calculators, 5,200 drug entries, 27,000 graphics and almost 1,500 patient topics. The UpToDate app can be downloaded for both iOS and Android devices. However, it’s not cheap. While downloading the app is free, in order to tap into the wealth of content within, a subscription to the UpToDate database is required.
Name: Spok Mobile
Produced by: Spok Inc.
Price: Monthly subscription fee
OS: Apple and Android
In order to utilize Spok Mobile you need tobe a Spok customer. Spok Mobile is a critical messaging/ alerting application that simplifies communications and strengthens care by using smart-phones and tablets for receiving critical communications: code alerts, patient updates, test results, consult requests and more. A mobile API allows interoperability with third-party mobile applications, enabling secure patient discussions via an EMR app, communication with proprietary hospital apps and access to content on a cloud-based drive. It also allows for the encrypted delivery of third-party alerting/alarming systems such as telemetry monitors, nurse calls and critical results from the RIS and LIS.
Name: Epocrates
Produced by: Epocrates
Price: Free
OS: Apple and Android
We have written about Epocrates, but it’s been a while, so we are including it again for those who still don’t know about it. This app is widely regarded as a must-have for physicians looking for quick access to drug information and interactions, a way to find other providers for consults and referrals and quickly calculating patient measurements like BMI. While the app itself and most of its content is free, lab guides, alternative medications, disease information and other additional information can be accessed through an in-app purchase of Epocrates Essentials for $159.99 a year.
Of the 1.4 million apps used through Apple’s operating systems, more than 18,000 are for medical applications, and that doesn’t count another 10,000 apps listed as “health and fitness apps.” By comparison, the Google Play Store, which is the Android platform marketplace, boasts about 1.5 million apps, of which about 2 percent are focused on medical, health and fitness categories.
In April, HealthCare Business News asked its readers to share with us their favorite health apps or the ones they are most excited about. Based on that feedback, as well as some internal discussions and research, we have selected 10 apps that deserve to stand out from the crowd.
Name: AirStrip ONE
Produced by: AirStrip
Price: Free
OS: Apple / Android
AirStrip has been dealing in the medical app market for over a decade, and with AirStrip ONE it aims to create a complete enterprise solution. By connecting the AirStrip ONE platform and application to a health system's existing EMR, cardiology and patient monitor products, AirStrip ONE provides a complete infrastructure for clinical mobility. Designed to be vendor-agnostic, the beauty of AirStrip ONE is that it opens up the possibility that physicians will be able to access whatever relevant information they need from the patient record just as easily as they would pull up a website. It is also cleared by the FDA for use as a diagnostic aid, so users can be confident that the data displayed is reliable.
Name: My Baby’s Beat
Produced by: Matis Inc.
Price: $4.99
OS: Android and Apple
My Baby’s Beat, which monitors a fetus’ heartbeat during pregnancy, was one that several readers submitted. The app simply uses the device’s microphone, with no accessory required, to pick up the heartbeat and make it loud enough to hear. This is one of the highest ranked and downloaded paid medical apps available on Apple’s App Store. While this fetal stethoscope is geared toward mothers instead of physicians — complete with record and share functions — the device still manages to bring key vital signs to the forefront.
Name: ACC’s Statin Intolerance App
Produced by: American College of Cardiology
Price: Free
OS: Apple and Android
The handy ACC Statin Intolerance App guides clinicians through the process of managing and treating patients who report muscle symptoms while on statin therapy. Clinicians use the app to answer questions and to evaluate possible intolerance to a patient’s current statin prescription, or follow steps to manage and treat a patient who reports muscle symptoms on a statin, or compare statin characteristics and drug interactions to inform patient management. The app bases its instructions on information and recommendations from the 2013 ACC/AHA Guideline on the Treatment of Blood Cholesterol to Reduce Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Risk in Adults, and the prescribing information for each statin.
Name: MAQ12 Anticoagulation Toolkit
Produced by: University of Michigan
Price: Free
OS: Apple
An up-to-date, easy-to-use resource for managing anticoagulation patients more safely and effectively, the MAQ12 is another free app that stands to help physicians make more confident treatment decisions. The content was developed by the Michigan Anticoagulation Quality Improvement Initiative (MAQI2), a Blue Cross Blue Shield/Blue Care network, which is a consortium of anticoagulation clinics and experts from across the state of Michigan, and is based on the latest guidelines and research. Although the app is intended for informational purposes, the developers say that it is not to be taken as actual medical advice. Instead, the toolkit is intended to educate users so that they can make better-informed decisions when evaluating real-life anticoagulation scenarios.
Name: RMD Finder
Produced by: Tarun Kotia
Price: Free
OS: Apple
CRMD Finder helps to solve a specific problem: trying to identify a patient’s cardiac rhythm management devices (CRMDs) such as pacemakers and ICDs simply by looking at the patient’s X-ray. Like many of the “doctor’s helper” apps on the market, this one does not depend on automation, but rather takes the user through a few questions to help ascertain the make and model of the patient’s implant.
It is estimated that as many as 60 different CRMD device types exist from at least five manufacturers. As the population ages and more people are getting access to care, the rate of implants is on the rise. For physicians treating a patient without a record of the exact type of device, CRMD Finder may unlock the answer.
Name: Lumify
Produced by: Philips Healthcare
Price: Free (subscription)
OS: Android
Lumify is not technically a stand-alone app, but an app-based ultrasound system deserves a spot on this year’s list. By inserting a transducer into an Android charge port, a smart device can become capable of performing ultrasound. The subscription service is being developed and Philips hopes to create a highly customizable catalogue of Lumify apps, such as one for automatic bladder volume calculations, for users to choose from, based on their own imaging needs. Two transducers are currently offered, including one for abdominal and obstruction imaging and another for vascular, thyroid and breast imaging. Although Lumify may add credence to the notion that ultrasound will displace the stethoscope, the real potential for app-based ultrasound to improve care may be in bringing access to rural patient populations.
Name: Quick ICD 10
Produced by: Nth Technologies
Price: Free
OS: Apple, Android
Like the popular translation apps that help people travel in countries where they don’t speak the language, Quick ICD 10 offers a simple and quick way to search and convert ICD 9 codes to
ICD 10 codes and back. The app allows users to search codes numerically or by description and, to speed up the process of redoing the same conversion, it remembers searches and allows the user to bookmark “favorite” codes.
Name: UpToDate
Produced by: UpToDate Inc.
Price: $499 a year for an individual physician
OS: Apple, Android
Since 1982, UpToDate has been linking health care professionals with evidence-based resources. The service offers more than 9,000 evidence-based and graded recommendations as well as more than 140 medical calculators, 5,200 drug entries, 27,000 graphics and almost 1,500 patient topics. The UpToDate app can be downloaded for both iOS and Android devices. However, it’s not cheap. While downloading the app is free, in order to tap into the wealth of content within, a subscription to the UpToDate database is required.
Name: Spok Mobile
Produced by: Spok Inc.
Price: Monthly subscription fee
OS: Apple and Android
In order to utilize Spok Mobile you need tobe a Spok customer. Spok Mobile is a critical messaging/ alerting application that simplifies communications and strengthens care by using smart-phones and tablets for receiving critical communications: code alerts, patient updates, test results, consult requests and more. A mobile API allows interoperability with third-party mobile applications, enabling secure patient discussions via an EMR app, communication with proprietary hospital apps and access to content on a cloud-based drive. It also allows for the encrypted delivery of third-party alerting/alarming systems such as telemetry monitors, nurse calls and critical results from the RIS and LIS.
Name: Epocrates
Produced by: Epocrates
Price: Free
OS: Apple and Android
We have written about Epocrates, but it’s been a while, so we are including it again for those who still don’t know about it. This app is widely regarded as a must-have for physicians looking for quick access to drug information and interactions, a way to find other providers for consults and referrals and quickly calculating patient measurements like BMI. While the app itself and most of its content is free, lab guides, alternative medications, disease information and other additional information can be accessed through an in-app purchase of Epocrates Essentials for $159.99 a year.