I promised to clear out some of the backlog of draft posts that built up during the home stretch of my Master's thesis, and this is as far back as it goes. Here's a quote from an article in eWeek back in mid-February entitled Motion Computing, Intel Push Tablet for Doctors.
In addition to its Intel-based architecture and tablet design, the C5 will include a number of features specifically geared toward the health care market. These include a magnesium-alloy internal frame, a faceplate and backplate composed of disinfectant-resistant material, RFID (radio-frequency identification) technology to keep track of patients, a digital camera and Bluetooth wireless technology.
This time, it may really work.
There have been two major hardware hurdles to overcome in making tablet PCs useful in a health care delivery environment. First, they have not been rugged enough. There have been tablets that were rugged enough to withstand the kind of use they would get in a busy clinic, ER, or OR, a prime example being TRS Tactical Systems' Hammerhead Walkabout. These, though, didn't meet the second hurdle, which is to avoid becoming a means of spreading diseases due to surface indentations and gaps that could accumulate enough organic matter to become a culture medium.
The Motion Computing C5 MCA (Mobile Clinical Assistant) appears to overcome these limitations, so now the question is software. The typical tablet computing platform provides a different set of affordances when compared with desktop or even laptop computing. Different becomes better when the software leverages the new affordances in overcoming limitations of previous generations of hardware platforms. Intel Health, a well-funded, results-oriented research lab, has been heavily involved. I consider that very good news.
We'll see how this turns out. I'll keep my eyes on the horizon and keep you, uh, posted. ;-)
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