Doctors at a hospital in Changhua City (彰化) have become pioneers in using the iPad, Apple’s tablet computer, to keep their patients informed, a hospital spokesman said yesterday.
“A doctor can show a patient his or her CT-scan or X-ray on an iPad when visiting the patient in the ward,” said Simon Lo (羅政勤), the doctor in charge of the iPad program at the Chang Bing Show Chwan Memorial Hospital. “In the past, patients would not be able to see these images while lying in bed.”
Through an iPad, the hospital is also able to send medical images to doctors who attend meetings overseas immediately after the images are taken, Lo said.
In the future, patients who receive remote care will also be able to access their medical information and images at home or when they seek medical help in other countries through an iPad, the spokesman said.
The medical applications of the iPad were first unveiled on Thursday by hospital superintendent Yeh Yung-hsiang (葉永祥), who said the iPad benefits both patients and doctors.
“Now, doctors no longer need to carry a big stack of medical records when visiting patients in their wards, which saves a lot of trouble,” Yeh said.
Lo added that seeing the images on an iPad improves communication between patients and doctors.
The iPad service is part of a “mobile office” collaboration between the hospital and Chunghwa Telecom Co, Taiwan’s largest telecom operator.
The iPad is not yet officially available in Taiwan, but Chunghwa Telecom Chairman Lu Shyue-ching (呂學錦) said because of the successful medical application it will speed up its efforts to introduce the popular device to Taiwan.
President of Show Chwan Health Care System Huang Min-ho (黃明和) said his group will buy at least 500 iPads for his doctors from Chunghwa Telecom in the future.
He said he believes that the medical application of the product would also appeal to tens of thousands of doctors, medical experts and senior nursing personnel in Taiwan.
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