How the iPhone Could Be A Medical Device
Please see the end of this post for an important note on future blog posts.
On Monday, I was following the buzz that Apple generated during its Worldwide Developer Conference on the MacCentral site. There were a lot of pretty cool features that were announced, but most interesting was the ability for software developers to build applications directed at specific accessories that could be attached to the iPhone. This might not sound like a big deal to the medical industry overall, but in reality, it opens up a consumer development platform that’s accessible to millions of people.
Two companies already appear poised to take advantage of this new offering from Apple. The first, LifeScan, is getting ready to release an application that will allow diabetics to test themselves using an external device and allow the iPhone to calculate the amount of insulin they’ll need to take for their next meal. Airstrip Technologies appeared later, demonstrating an application that could take patient’s waveform data and transmit it to their primary care physician. To be fair, this application is available on more than just the iPhone (a BlackBerry is also shown on the company’s web site), but the iPhone is likely giving both the most buzz.
The iPhone kind of reminds me more and more of a Star Trek Tricorder, which is capable of storing and analyzing a plethora of information in a small, handheld device. Really, with its developer support and increasing flexibility (not to mention more accessible price, starting at $99 with a 2-year contract at AT&T), it wouldn’t surprise me if this becomes the go-to device for more interactive applications outside of the medical industry.
How do you feel about these developments? Does security become a concern? Does this mean that in certain cases, use of an iPhone becomes medically necessary to monitor a patient’s health? Will insurance start to cover iPhone purchases, and subsidize a certain portion of the monthly fee? I mean, there’s a lot of places this could go.
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The BioPharm blog has been around a long time. Approximately 2 years, to be precise. And in those two years we’ve explored a lot of different topics and an industry change dramatically, scientifically, technologically and legally. We’re not sure what the future will bring, but we won’t be exploring those topics quite as frequently on this blog.
Avelient has changed too over the last 2 years, and while we continue to focus energy in the evolving Biotech and Pharmaceutical market, it is difficult to justify this blog as a continued part of that strategy. When considering our company’s growth, our focus has to shift to the areas where we see marked growth, both in opportunities and in revenue.
It’s likely that I’ll still occasionally update this blog, but not as frequently as I once did.
It will also remain here as a resource for past articles until we see that’s no longer necessary either.
You can continue following our meetup group and follow our other blog, “The Web and You,” which focuses more on web technology and strategy as it relates to small business.
Thanks for your readership over the last two years, I sincerely appreciate it!
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