Survey:Rapid iPad Adoption Thanks to Point-of-Care Apps

iPad deployments are accelerating in large part due to the mobile device’s compelling point-of-care applications and uses, according to a survey of nearly 950 Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) members from the Columbia, Md.-based BoxTone, a Mobile Service Management (MSM) software company.

Key findings include:

• More than 25 percent of the HIMSS respondents plan to deploy the iPad and other iOS devices immediately and nearly 70 percent plan to deploy the devices within the next year.
• One-third identified point-of-care applications - including lab order visualization and results, clinical decision support and medical image viewing applications - as top priorities, while 18 percent identified general administration including billing, coding and claims applications as top priorities.
• When provided with a choice of options for potential iPad IT management challenges, nearly 75 percent identified secure configuration and deployment as the number one challenge and 53 percent identified mobile application and deployment as a key challenge.

The survey took place on October 26 during an online Webinar co-sponsored by BoxTone and HIMSS. Nearly 70 percent of the attendees were from hospitals or healthcare organizations with more than 1500 employees, which typically act as bellwethers for new healthcare IT trends. Another significant fact: 15 percent of attendees were executive-level employees or physicians, evidence that the device is viewed strategically in the healthcare sector.