Mobility in Healthcare: M-Health

Introduction

Mobility is the indispensable part of life today. We carry our computers in our pockets. First tablets appeared, used as an alternative of laptop PCs, when we are roaming and need computer for any purpose. Then they become smaller. Finally the phones become the mobile computers that we carry, they become Phablet, meaning phone tablet. As the storage and processing technologies make the hardware possible to be smaller, all areas of business try to make use of this fantastic development. The more common the Phablet, the more in number the mobile applications are. Now almost all known companies have mobile applications, that can be used in Phablets. From banks to many commercial enterprises developed a mobile application for Phablets/smart phones and the users, we, liked it very much. We can make banking operations in the bus, have shopping at home, view and pay bills without depending on the place and time.

One of the areas which makes use of this facility to a great extent is Healthcare. Healthcare has welcomed mobility very well. The nature of the healthcare needed mobile technology and applications and it has forced the development for years.

Every healthcare institution, no matter what size, uses an information system. The information systems used in healthcare institutions are called as Healthcare Information System (HCIS). Electronic-Health (E-health) is the term for the use of electronic computation facilities in healthcare. HCIS is a part of E-health. The data and information is stored and disseminated electronically and easier when compared to the paper based system used in the past.

The orders of the patients are given by means of HCIS, test results of the patients are viewed by means of HCIS, in short we can say that, every piece of patient data is recorded and viewed by means of HCIS. The common way is employing desktop PCs in HCIS as clients. The nature of the work, especially for the inpatients, urges system designers to employ mobile technologies in HCIS. The mobility of healthcare staff, both in the institution and outside of it, makes it impossible to use HCIS by desktop PCs or stationary equipment. Morning patient visits, surgery side entries or views, inpatient monitoring, etc. are the additional issues that enforce mobility.

Mobility is not limited to access to HCIS for sure. There are many applications and hardware used. Wearable devices are available for patients. The term M-health (or mHealth), abbreviation used for mobile health, tells more about how intensively mobility is used in healthcare. It can be defined as “the use of wireless communication devices to support public health and clinical practice” (Kahn, Yang, & Kahn, 2010). Another wider definition may be “M-Health is the application of mobile computing, wireless communications and network technologies to deliver or enhance diverse healthcare services and functions in which the patient has a freedom to be mobile, perhaps within a limited area“ (Pawar, Jones, Beijnum, & Hermens, 2012).

Wearable devices are used for a variety of purpose, most commonly to record vital signs of the patient during the daily life. Body/Personal Area Network (BAN/PAN) are constituted to manage and integrate these devices. Home Area Networks (HAN) are also available too. These issues will be examined in detail in the further parts.

Mobile healthcare applications have a wide area. In the USA, the mobile healthcare applications increased so much that Food and Drug Administration (FDA) drafted regulation guidance (FDA, 2012). In the USA, it is reported that more than 80% of health care providers use mobile devices and software applications (Moyer, 2013). Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) has also regulations for mobile device management policies. These regulations will constitute a part of the chapter.