It may not be long before doctors have more tools at their disposal than a stethoscope and a prescription pad. According to a recent Healthcare IT News article, doctors are looking forward to incorporating the iPad mini into their work.
A survey prior to the iPad mini’s release from medical app developer found that one-third of physicians planned to buy the device. Several analysts cited size as an important factor for the iPad mini’s success, as it bridges the difference between smartphones and full-size tablets. Most critically, its size is ideal for the pockets of a lab coat.
“The key is the size,” Marianne Braunstein, vice president of product management for Epocrates, told Healthcare IT News. “This is really something that physicians can carry around. You're going to see favoritism based on size.”
Computerworld cited a QuantiaMD survey from earlier this year in which 80 percent of physicians claimed to own a mobile device that can download applications. The survey found that doctors are most interested in using these devices to access electronic medical records. The iPad mini’s pocket-size portability is likely to appeal to doctors seeking this function.
For physicians whose iPads catch an illness such as a dead battery, iResQ offers free diagnostics and iPad repair services to get the tablet back to full health.