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From PalmAddicts, by Jeffrey D. Jarin, M.D.:
An Appeal to Palm from the Medical Community
Having seen parts of the Keynote speech at the last WWDC where there were a couple of medical apps that were introduced as well as at the MacWorld Expo last January, it seemed very clear that Apple has a new target customer in mind...
Doctors.
Much of the blogsphere did not pay much attention to it. In fact, some live blogs at that time were egging presentors to get past all these medical stuff which to them were "boring". They didn't care about it at all. But why did Apple, given their almost nonexistent track record in the medical community, have to interject Medical apps into a software developer conference that is supposed to feature some cool and exciting applications for the iPhone?
It's because Apple realized that Doctors are fast becoming one of the leading "professional" users of handheld devices and smartphones. And we do have the financial means to purchase such kinds of devices, more than the general population.
I think Palm has to look at this push by Apple very seriously.
Medical apps have long been a domain of the Palm OS. Years and years worth of medical apps have been written for Palm and healthcare professionals have so embraced Palm OS technology in this field that more and more of them are actually becoming VERY dependent on these apps. Still true today, Treos are still the most widely used smartphones amongst doctors.
But this may not be for long.
Amazing how much of a push Apple is making at the medical arena. ePocrates is undeniably THE most popular medical app for Palm. More and more, ePocrates is becoming for doctors what a calculator is for an Accountant. I admit to being dependent on it too a lot of times. But the ePocrates app that was made for the iPhone was just astounding in its advancement in features... Built in pictures of pills... that's a killer app for us right there.
And then in the just concluded WWDC, they came up with two more exciting apps. Modality, a beautiful Anatomy Atlas with built in flashcards and quizzes. Palm OS has long been able to handle the Netter Anatomy Atlas thru iSilo, but it never executed this reference material in the way the iPhone did. Second is the MIMvista, Reference app for Radiologists, which only to a doctor's eyes were just breathtaking. I can definitely imagine the radiologists who can see this app just salivating out for this app.
Palm needs to be worried. Very worried.
We have been one of Palm's most loyal customers. Starting from the first Palm Pilots to the Treos today, we doctors have been one of their biggest user bases. But it just worries me a lot that I am seeing more and more doctors carrying an iPhone rather than a Treo or a TX. What's worse is that more and more doctors that I have talked to, are planning to shift to the iPhone once their contracts with their Treos expire. This was reiterated by Scott Forstall during the last Apple keynote:
FACT: One-Third of the doctors that were planning to buy a new phone in the next 12 months are planning to buy an iPhone, making it their number one choice.
Palm needs to pay attention to this. Or else they risk losing one of their biggest customers. Personally, one thing that has kept me from shifting to the iPhone is the Built-in Palm Memo app in which i have collected hundreds of Memos and Notes, which i have created as I went thru my medical career, memos i have lived and sworn by. But once I am able to import those memos, I may find myself on the fence as well.
It's not just the functionality though. The number of doctors that have shifted to the iPhone as early as now, even with the scarcity of medical apps available today, goes to show what other things doctors are looking for in terms of their gadgets and smartphones... Style and Elegance. A Professional Look. Doctors are one of the vanest people on earth. They want to look good, feel like the best, and own the best gadgets.
Palm needs to show up soon. Or else there will be a big flocking of medical professionals to the iPhone. Specially with the SDK coming, more and more medical apps are surely going to be available for the iPhone.
Just what do they need to show?
First is New Hardware. Unlike the majority, i don't think Doctors care much for built-in wifi or updated Palm OS more than a new form factor for the Treo. We could care less about playing music and videos, doing GPS, touch flow, multitouch... really. The current Palm OS is fine. It works for us. It runs all the applications that we need in the medical field. Just give us a sleek new Treo with the Palm OS that looks at least as good as the iPhone and i think less doctors will be shifting to the iPhone.
Number Two. A Killer medical app. We have yet to see the ideal device for the doctor and a killer app... and I firmly believe it's all about instant access to patient or hospital records. The killer app for us would be an app that gives us instant access to data about our patients such as latest laboratory results or radiology reads, right in the palm of our hands or just a reach of a hand away. I could definitely see this in a device such as the Foleo. Gone are the bulky charts that can let loose inches thick of paper any second. If there was an app that would allow us to access patient data in a fullscreen and in a device as small as the Foleo that we can easily carry around, that would be an absolute killer. In fact, our hospital right now uses the Novell Groupwise ecosystem, which traces its roots to Linux, an operating system very close to Palm's hearts. Once that can be imprinted on the footrpints of the Treo or Foleo OS, it could change the way doctors handle patient data forever. It has the potential to reshape hospital care as we know it and give that push EMR (Electronic Medical Records) has long been searching for, as more and more hospitals are struggling to adopt to it.
Number Three. Updated software. Maybe it needs a new operating system, maybe it does not. The way the most popular Palm medical apps have been developed for the iPhone is an example of how a simple update could rekindle interest in Palm OS. Definitely, Palm needs to collaborate with their main healthcare software developers and keep Palm medical software at par with iPhone medical software if they want to keep doctors on their side.
That's about it. Three things. I dont think it is that difficult to achieve. It does not even need an overhaul of the OS. Another thing about us doctors that Palm needs to understand is that we are really not that hard to please. Just ask the different med reps that come to us everyday to promote their drugs. Just give us free food and we are always willing to listen and give you our time. Same goes for you Palm. We don't need the latest features and the top of the line all the time. Unlike many other of our brethren in the tech world, we are not so equipped to deal with changes in technology. Just give us something that works and we will be happy. Show us a little something that will make us look forward to staying on the Palm OS. Even a little glimpse would be enough. We like Palm. We really do. And we would like to keep it that way.
