Do you use a Tablet PC?

[Admin]

Anyone here use a Tablet PC at work? If so, what kind do you have? Is it linked into your EMR?

[enochchoi]

I use an OQO model 01+ which accesses EPIC via Citrix

[Admin]

Hi enochchoi, welcome to the site! :-) The OQO looks pretty cool - how are you finding it to use?

[techguy]

We have 16 Gateway convertible tablets in our environment. Overall they have done the job. I wish I would have had more time to look at the different options, but I was pressed up against a wall. I think their life span isn't going to last what we want them to. Mostly because I could only get them with 512MB of RAM. At first they were quoted with 256 MB of RAM. I would have been shot had they come with just that. I should have kept looking and held out for the 1gig at least.

Oh well, live and learn. They are working quite well, but I think the tablet features are overrated. I see some pluses in certain environments and certain applications, but overall I think a keyboard and mouse rule right now. Maybe the applications of the future will change that.

I am interested in having the tablets being able to accept digital signatures. We'll see how that goes.

[Admin]

Who uses the tablets John?

I used to work at a hospital where we had an orthopaedic fracture clinic where we would see patients standing up. The clinic had about 20 cubicles where patients would wait and we would go round each cubicle seeing them. If we needed anything off the computer we would have to leave the cubicle and trot up to where the computer was. I think in this kind of environment tablets would work really well. It would be expensive to have a desktop in each cubicle and there wasn't really room to put down a laptop and be able to type. If you had a tablet you could hold it in one hand and enter information with the other whilst you were standing up.

I use to have a PDA which I used for looking up drug doses and clinical info but it wasn't connected to the patient records or results system. We were going to have a go at using a wireless PDA connected to the hospital system but my rotation finished before I had a chance to get it working.

If you are sitting at a desk with the patients coming to you I think you would really be better off with a desktop though.

[techguy]

Originally Posted by Admin

Who uses the tablets John?

We've really gone back and forth on this principle. In the end I think a tablet(not a convertible) with desktops in every room is the best option. Sometimes it is nice to have a tablet that you can carry around with you and show information to the patient, etc. However, in the end I think a keyboard and mouse on a wired connection is more reliable and better. This may also depend on the type of software that you use for your EMR. Some software can handle the tablet and wireless better. I just don't see as many advantages. I do think Biometrics is the way to go. I have talked about it http://www.crashutah.com/emr/adminis...rprint-logins/ before.

In the end all of our nurses, apns, doctors all use tablets, but most of them have them docked and are using them like a workstation.

[Admin]

Thanks for the info. I think that some people are real fans of tablets and would use them in just about any setting. My personal opinion is that they are probably better suited to some settings than others. One factor might be that I prefer typing to handwriting recognition - I'm a big fan of thumboards on PDAs for example. If there is a keyboard I can sit down and type at I would certainly prefer to use it than enter the information via a stylus.

I'm looking forward to biometric logins being used more widely. I'd love to see a way of using them for logging into websites for example - I use quite a few sites that require login and I'm forever typing in usernames and passwords everywhere. I don't think it's that secure and it's getting pretty inconvenient - almost every new website that's created now requires a login.

As you say in your article, I think having patients use them instead of signing would probably be a lot more convenient for EMRs - have you ever heard of patients using a PIN for confirming consents and things?

[techguy]

I agree with some people being fans of the tablets in any setting. They are similar to Mac users in that respect. I think they have their place and I'm excited to see what will happen with them in the future. There is something nice about writing stuff down. It gives a certain amount of flexibility to what you document.

As far as biometrics they are pretty much here. One of the biggest things I like now is active directory stuff. The key to their expansion is that they are being built into laptops. You actually can use biometrics with websites. Even just the $50 Microsoft branded biometric login/wireless mouse can store passwords to your computer, to all your programs and websites also. It is pretty sweet. The only problem is that then you start to forget your passwords for different sites so you have to write them down.

have you ever heard of patients using a PIN for confirming consents and things?

I've heard of something similar. I think it has its place, but our lawyer really has made it clear there are only a few options for digital signatures(with the caveat that the case law is still unclear). One is having a login that can be uniquely identified with one person(this isn't the legal description) or to capture the signature electronically(like is done at walmart for your credit card). I would like to see the biometrics come along so it could be used as a signature for things. You capture the biometrics once and then you ask for their biometrics to sign any future consents. If they match then you're good to go. I hear this can also be done with a signature on a tablet using angles, pressure, and other factors. I still haven't had a chance to look at that more.

[Admin]

Is this the mouse you mean? http://www.eyenetwatch.com/biosecuri...ader-mouse.htm

Looks pretty cool might have to give it a try.

For accecpting deliveries in the UK you have to sign on a PDA that records your signature digitally - I don't think it detects angles or pressure just a fairly pixelated version of your signature. Probably not secure enough for EMR purposes though.

[techguy]

That's the one. Although it was $50 retail price in the US. Just make sure you get the mouse and biometric. It's the same price as the biometric by itself.