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Website Review

Handheld Medical Computing Devices

Toronto, Ontario

http://www.Handheldmed.com/

Anesthesiologists and other mobile health care providers require timely, portable access to clinical information, such as reference materials (books and charts) or even information about specific patients (e.g., pain service patients or past anesthetic procedures). Since recourse to library resources in order to answer clinical questions is often impractical when one is caring for a patient intraoperatively, there is a clear need for electronic materials that are easily accessed using a pocket-sized computer system, such as a member of the PalmPilot^TM family or other handheld device. These gadgets are small enough to keep in your OR scrubs' top pocket (where they risk spilling out) or (more appropriately) attached to a belt using a leather pouch.

For many anesthesiologists, the PalmPilot^TM has become an indispensable tool for personal information and clinical care. Many other individuals have chosen the PocketPC platform or the Psion platform for similar purposes. These and related devices are generically known as Personal Digital Assistants or PDA's.

The handheldmed site offers many resources to health care professionals interested in PDAs. this includes news on new hardware and software and information on Avantgo^TM's information retrieval technology (An important source of nonclinical information for mobile individuals is from Avantgo^TM (http://avantgo.com) who call themselves "the leading provider of infrastructure software and services that power the mobile economy" by providing individuals with "real-world solutions" both wirelessly or via synchronization with a host computer.)

The handheldmed site also has an informative section on WAP enabled cell phones and hand-held devices, a technology expected to grow substantially in the next few years. (WAP stands for Wireless Application Protocol, a software system for information formatting similar to HTML, the standard for normal web pages, but downsized for smaller devices. Essentially this technology allows a form of simplified web access using small wireless PDA devices)

In the links section of the site there are hyperlinks to companies and organizations that offer products and services of potential value to users of handheld-computer-based medical devices. An example is information on special sensor cards for PDA devices that convert them into miniature ECG monitors or pulse oximeters or spirometers. One special appeal of such equipment is that valuable space is saved since the software and computer system is based on a handheld platform.

The site even provides the option to make PDA e-book purchases via the Internet. As an example, the "Family Practice Library", available for an annual subscription rate of USD $121.22, "includes all of the essentials for the informed Family Practitioner", including the Physician's Drug Handbook, The 5-Minute Clinical Consult, The 5-Minute Pediatric Consult,and your choice of one other title.

Similarly one can purchase full journal articles if one finds a (free) abstract that looks interesting (this latter service is offered in partnership with Aries Systems, developer of the Knowledge Finder® search engine for MEDLINE). To order an article at the handheldmed site, "simply click on the check box located at the beginning of the article title(s), enter your e-mail address in the field provided, click the Order button. The next time you sync your unit you will receive an e-mail with ordering information".

I recommend this site to all individuals interested in hand held computer applications in medicine.

This Article Full Text (PDF) Submit a scholarly reply Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Doyle, D. J. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Doyle, D. J.