Revolutionizing healthcare: 4 ways tablets are transforming patient care

The healthcare industry is in a digital revolution transforming how providers care for patients at every point of care. While we have already witnessed technology playing a significant role in healthcare, we are about to see a massive shift in how we access and use it. Improvements in cloud solutions, increased capacity of microprocessors, and miniaturization of medical devices are making tablets an essential tool for healthcare providers. In addition, by incorporating peripherals and apps, tablets can combine multiple devices into a single unit, saving hospitals money, time, and valuable floor space.

Incorporating tablets at the point of care allows medical practitioners to increase engagement with the patient, walk them through imaging and scans remotely, bring specialists into a consultation, provide translation services, and monitor their patients remotely. As a result, clinicians increase efficiency and productivity while improving communication and collaboration with patients and other healthcare professionals.

A study published by the Journal of Medical Internet Research found that nurses using tablets for EHR access saved considerable time and enjoyed reduced workloads when registering patients. A similar study discovered that doctors significantly reduced ward round preparation and post-processing time by using tablets to access EHRs at the bedside. Other benefits of real-time EHR access include improved documentation, reduced errors, and easy customization.

Bedside EHR carts enable clinicians to focus on patients and walk them through procedures, notes, and consent from one device. Real-time data entry also allows better patient care through quicker lab turnaround and pharmacy dispensing times, decreasing expenses while increasing revenue.

Virtual patient observation is a game-changing telehealth technology allowing clinicians to monitor their patients remotely. This technology benefits at-risk patients with chronic conditions who require constant monitoring. Using a tablet mounted on a patient observation cart, trained staff members can observe their patients' health conditions and behaviors from a distance. This real-time insight allows clinicians to identify potential health risks and take proactive measures to prevent adverse events before they occur.

Virtual patient observation is a cost-effective and efficient way to provide high-quality patient care. This technology reduces healthcare costs while ensuring patients receive the care they need by minimizing the need for in-person specialist care and expensive medical equipment. Additionally, virtual patient observation enables healthcare professionals to serve a larger number of patients spread over a wider geographical area. With the growing prevalence of chronic conditions and an aging population, virtual patient observation is rapidly becoming essential to healthcare.

Telemedicine has revolutionized healthcare by virtually connecting providers and patients more simply and quickly than ever. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, telemedicine services have surged and show no signs of slowing. With tablets or a pc and camera mounted on a lightweight cart, clinicians can bring specialists into the patient room to provide expert consultation without the expense of travel or wait time for appointments. Combined with electronic medical records and digital imaging, practitioners can provide more accurate and expedient care than ever from a remote location. Medical facilities are just beginning to explore the advantages of telemedicine services, and use cases are expected to increase significantly in the coming years.

Often providers are confronted with language barriers when attempting to serve the deaf or people of diverse language groups. Thus, hospitals are required to provide translation services, ensuring equitable patient care no matter the patient's background. However, finding local translators is challenging, expensive, and a common cause of delays in care. A tablet VRI cart eliminates language barriers at scale, bringing expert translators from anywhere worldwide into the patient's room to provide accurate translation services over a video feed.

Implementing new technologies that already exist and are in use brings beneficial changes to medical treatment. Clinicians can efficiently expand their knowledge base and skill set while serving more patients at lower costs. Further, patients receive improved care with reduced travel and wait times.

A tablet at the point of care enables access to all these new, exciting, transformational technologies. However, one practical problem facing clinicians is how to hold their tablets while still being able to use both hands to help the patients and manipulate medical devices. The solution is a secure, versatile tablet cart at the point of care. With a tablet cart, clinicians' hands are unincumbered, tablets will not fall and break, and devices are secured from loss and theft. View additional Tryten resources for hospital IT professionals looking to implement tablet technology.