Blog | News & Information on Wireless Services & Telecommunications
Posted: 07/26/11 by Mobile Future Team
Today, we celebrate the 21st anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the landmark legislation that made equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities the law of the land. Since its passage over twenty years ago, the increased accessibility wireless innovations have afforded those with disabilities is truly transformational. With the help of wireless devices, the disability community is experiencing quality of life advances and new independence in their everyday lives.
The awe-inspiring progress and profound innovation we’ve seen in the mobile applications market has opened up a new world of possibilities for the 54 million Americans living with disabilities. These innovations are allowing kids with disabilities to bring the technology they need to school on the coolest new smartphones and tablets, and with 10,000 baby boomers turning 65 each day this year, wireless advances will allow them to live their lives the way they always have.
These transformative technologies include:
Having a modern speech synthesizer in the palm of your hand. Instead of relying on computers and cumbersome devices to convert text-to-speech, those with visual impairments can now employ ZoomReader to hear what’s written on everything from menus to medications and e-mails. Using the iPhone’s built-in camera, users are able to convert writing into text which the app can read aloud or magnify so those users with low vision can more easily read. The camera’s LED flash can also be used as a flashlight to make reading in dark places easier with LED Torch Flashlight.
Even US currency can now easily be identified and read aloud with the help of your smartphone and LookTel Money Reader .
Touring local museums. Keen Guides has revolutionized the way those with hearing impairments tour local venues. By combining video tours with closed captioning, Keen Guides lets users experience a variety of locations including cultural sites, colleges and parks all around the country via their mobile device.
Communicating with others. iConverse helps individuals with communicative disabilities express their thoughts and feelings by providing images and icons of various everyday occurrences for the users to select. Not only does the app allow users to develop their own custom images, but users can add text to the pictures which the app reads aloud.
Placing a call with minimal steps. For those with visual and dexterity impairments, navigating an address book and dialing a number can be a hurdle. A Special Phone has eliminated many of these challenges and allows users to place a call by simply shaking the smartphone.
Our mobile device has quickly become one of the most important gadgets we own. For the one in five Americans that has a disability, smartphones have moved far beyond being just a communication tool- they are revolutionizing the way people with disabilities interact with the world around them. As we continue down this road of exciting innovation and jaw-dropping developments, the future advancements in accessibility are endless.
Posted: 07/19/11 by Mobile Future Team
Mobile devices are connecting health workers in developing countries to vital information on new treatment procedures and offer these workers a way to take exams, browse medical publications and discuss diagnosis from remote areas.
As reported in The East African,
“Renowned economist Jeffrey Sachs has called the mobile phone “the single most transformative technology for development.”
Also, cutting-edge mHealth technology is going intergalactic as the International Space Station will be home to a new mobile cardiovascular ultrasound system that will monitor astronaut’s health.
To read more, click here.
Posted: 06/16/11 by Mobile Future Team
Recognizing the huge potential in integrating wireless health monitoring systems into a vehicle, major players in the automotive industry have pointed to several revolutionary advancements that could make drivers safer and healthier while on the road. According to a Bloomberg article, included in the list of future advancements are a car seat that automatically checks the drivers heart rate, a mobile app monitoring pollen count and syncing with the dashboard to offer the driver an allergy-friendly route and a built in glucose-monitoring device to ensure a drivers blood sugar doesn’t go too low while driving.
To learn more, click here.
Posted: 06/07/11
Both doctors and patients are pleased with the greater mobility wireless technologies provide to clinicians. According to a recent CIO article, Texas Health Resources- a healthcare provider with numerous hospitals- found that about 40% of doctors own an iPad or other tablet and that these devices allow doctors to leave their desktop computers and spend more time with patients. While Texas Health has plans to release an app that will allow clinicians to view EKG’s on smartphones and tablets later this month, a new app that helps determine the likelihood of someone suffering from a concussion has already gained attention from those in the head-trauma field.
To learn more, click here.
Posted: 02/09/11 by Mobile Future Team
Text4Baby-- the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition’s educational program that delivers free information to pregnant women or mothers of babies less than a year old via text message-- has successfully reached 135,000 women to date and has set a new goal of signing up one million women by next year.
By texting tips and reminders to mothers and mothers-to-be based on their child’s birthday or due date, Text4Baby gives women access to information on how to seek vital prenatal and postnatal care and advice during each stage of their child’s development. As reported in the NYTimes, these tips include how to find a doctor, quit smoking and begin the breastfeeding process, in addition to regular reminders for immunization shots and doctor appointments.
Text4Baby is a great example of how mobile technology can help streamline and improve healthcare. To signup for Text4Baby and learn more, click here.
Posted: 01/20/11 by Mobile Future Team
The idea of combining healthcare and mobile technology to create better and less costly health service continues gaining speed. And why not? As we noted earlier this year, a majority of U.S. physicians already use a tablet or smartphone in their work.
Mike Snider at USA Today picked up on this mobile healthcare (or, mHealth) revolution in a recent story and the innovation he documents is eye-opening:
“Cellphones have already proven to be a potent medical instrument in improving patient outcomes. Diabetes patients who are sent videos on their cellphones and actually view them are more likely to check blood sugar levels and comply with their care regimens, said U.S. Army Col. Ron Poropatich…. And wounded veterans sent text messages via cellphone have better follow-up treatment routines and feel more connected to caregivers, said Poropatich.”
Other examples of mHealth innovations include:
- A touch-screen wireless real-time video system allowing homebound parents to stay connected online with only a touch-screen -- no mouse or keyboard required. Think of the implications for seniors or the disabled!
- A wireless system offering automated fall and wander detection and medical monitoring. You wear a wristwatch that tracks your location, sends out fall alerts and records your body temperature and pulse.
- Data tracking monitors for athletes to record and track workout progress using free mobile apps.
Welcome to the mobile future!
Posted: 01/06/11 by Mobile Future Team
A report today from market research firm Kalorama Information concludes that in 2010, a majority of U.S. physicians used a PDA or smartphone for their work, up from 35-40 percent in 2008.
That report complements a second study, issued last week, projecting that use of mobile health (or m-health) apps will triple by 2012. That study, titled “Health Check: Key Players in Healthcare,” was based on a public survey showing that 70 percent of respondents want access to m-health apps, even if they have to pay for it.
Meanwhile yesterday’s Wall Street Journal had a lengthy article about the vibrancy of the m-Health app market. Reporter Anya Martin writes, “A growing number of free or cheap smartphone apps aim to help caregivers keep track of medication dosages, nutritional requirements and other daily health-care needs.” She cites one recent study showing that mobile users can choose from more than 8,700 health-related apps.
The reason for all this activity is straightforward: Mobile healthcare offers the promise of dramatically expanding healthcare coverage for those with debilitating diseases while doing so more efficiently. Patients who once had to travel to a doctor’s office for routine tests can now have them done at home, with the results automatically relayed to their provider.
Expanded coverage. Cost savings. That’s the reality of m-Health.
Posted: 12/07/10 by Mobile Future Team
Mobile apps handle just about everything these days: entertainment, scheduling, home monitoring, cloud computing. But until today, few would suggest that mobile apps are a matter of life and death.
Not anymore. Last week, Eric Cooper, a basketball coach at La Verne Lutheran High School in California, downloaded a $1.99 mobile app that offers CPR instruction.
His timing could not have been better. This week, according to the Los Angeles Times, his star center-- who has a heart condition that causes irregular pumping of the blood-- collapsed on the court. Using CPR tips from the app, Coach Cooper was able to revive the player and keep his heart beating until paramedics arrived.
We’ve written previously about how mobile apps are revolutionizing our lives, especially in healthcare. Mobile technology is making healthcare more accessible and affordable. And whether the technology is a smartphone app or a more complex monitoring system for a home-bound senior, mobile’s potential to save lives is amazing.
Posted: 11/29/10 by Mobile Future Team
It happens every year: We emerge from our turkey-induced stupor and stumble immediately into our holiday social calendars, the sights and sounds of the season making it too difficult to say no to one more piece of peppermint bark or that final glass of eggnog. When it comes to our palettes, it really is the most wonderful time of the year.
But if your impeding festivities have you fearing the holiday bulge, check out Tech Talk from the NY Times, which has conveniently profiled a slew of innovative tech gadgets that will have you looking forward to exercising between fetes and really allow you to enjoy your season's eatings.
Posted: 11/12/10 by Mobile Future Team
Taking place earlier this week, the 2010 mHealth Summit emphasized the important role technology plays in the healthcare field. Keynotes, breakout sessions and exhibit demonstrations all demonstrated how the marriage of technology and medicine acts as a gateway to better quality of care services and innovations that facilitate healthcare for underserved populations. Bill Gates, one of the keynote speakers at the Summit, called for new efficient innovations to move mHealth forward.
Some of the new technologies and applications discussed at the Summit include GlowCaps from Vitality, a pill bottle that calls your phone as a reminder to take medication and orders refills from the pharmacy, and iTriage- a symptom to provider pathway app that integrates your personal health record, reports live ER wait times, and allows you to view multiple family members health info as well as your own health plan info. Click here to read more coverage of the Summit.
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