Showing posts with label patient. Show all posts
Showing posts with label patient. Show all posts
Sunday, March 8, 2009
"Everyware" Health Care: A Personal Focus
For the next few weeks, I'll be focusing some on my experiences with technology and health care.
This time, my posts will be on a more personal level. As I write this post, I am sitting in the family waiting area of the cardiac ICU at the Cleveland Clinic. My dad's surgery was Tuesday, and it is now Sunday, so I have had plenty of time on my hands to observe how technology is used to deliver his care, monitor his progress, and support his recovery.
Since I view things from a broader human-computer interaction perspective, I've decided to share some of my thoughts the"Hospital UX" picture, putting myself in the shoes of patients, family members, and medical professionals.
A Clean and Sterile Wait
This is the new lounge where families wait while their loved ones undergo cardiac surgery. The old family waiting area at the Cleveland Clinic had a cozy, home-like feel, with comfortable chairs and cheery art. The new waiting area has a very sterile, minimalist feel. The chairs are NOT comfortable, especially if you are middle-age or older and have the usual aches and pains!
Corridor to Nowhere?
Some of the corridors at the hospital have a surreal, institutional feel.
Hospital Corridor Eye Candy
Other corridors are a bit more...uplifting?
You are.... where?!

It is still quite difficult to figure out where you are and how to get to where you are going.
Note: I'll revisit this post to discuss this further - below are a few interesting links:You are.... where?!
It is still quite difficult to figure out where you are and how to get to where you are going.
Microsoft Health Common User Interface: Patient Journey Demonstrator
via Martin Grason: Adventures of a 'Devigner'
Future Hospitals form Designit 12/30/08
"How can hospitals offer a better service – for patients and visitors? And improve working conditions for staff? Designit has been asked to find the answer by applying explorative, user-driven innovation at the heart of public sector delivery: Odense University Hospital, Denmark's largest hospital."
"The project, which starts in January, aims to deliver groundbreaking service innovation that could serve as a blueprint for future public healthcare improvements – in Denmark and abroad."
Obama's Plan to Digitize Medical Records Draws Criticism from Doctors
Dan Nosowitz, Gizmodo, 3/7/09
Computer Will See You Now
Anne Armstrong-Coben, New York Times, 3/5/09
"Now that I’ve been using a computer to keep patient records — a practice that I once looked forward to — my participation with patients too often consists of keeping them away from the keyboard while I’m working, for fear they’ll push a button that implodes all that I have just documented...Room is provided for text, but in the computer’s font, important points often get lost. I have half-joked with residents that they could type “child has no head” in the middle of a computer record — and it might be missed....The personal relationships we build in primary care must remain a priority, because they are integral to improved health outcomes. Let us not forget this as we put keyboards and screens within the intimate walls of our medical homes.."
Note: Anne Armstrong-Corben is a clinical professor of pediatrics at Columbia.
Obama's Big Idea: Digital health records
David Goldman, CNN Money 1/12/09
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Skype in the Hospital: Link to post about communication across the miles and generations

More hospitals offer free WiFi for patients and their families. One hospital near Grand Rapids, Michigan, offers large-screen displays with Internet access as well as access to the patient's medical information. Any thoughts?
For more information and links, read the related post on the Interactive Multimedia Technology blog.
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