Assignment 3: Mobile Computing and Social Networking

CIS 500
November 24, 2013

Introduction
The U.S. market for advanced patient monitoring systems has grown from $3.9 billion in 2007 to $8.9 billion in 2011 and is forecast to reach $20.9 billion by 2016, according to a study by Kalorama Information. Efforts to reduce costs in healthcare, avoid emergency room overcrowding, and prepare for a growing number of elderly patients in the years to come are a few of the drivers for the adoption of these systems. (Remote Patient Monitoring, 2012)

Compare and contrast monitoring of patient vital signs using mobile computing technology to in-patient visits to the doctor’s office or hospital.

Advances in remote patient monitoring include new peripherals, real-time audio and video for "face-to-face" interaction between clinicians and patients, and devices that are expected to transmit data to a physician's EMR system. The use of smart phones and broadband-enabled devises has allowed patients to do their own monitoring of vital signs and body functions and upload them to their medical provider’s clinical servers. For example, a glucose monitor that can also track a patient's blood pressure, another trend is the increasing use of patient monitoring systems that come with data processing applications and equipment that use algorithms to evaluate monitoring measurements for a patient's specific condition. (Remote Patient Monitoring, 2012) Hospitals and physician’s offices are also utilizing mobile computing technology. Hospital rooms across the nation have various devices such as EKG machines, ventilators, oxygen sensors and blood pressure sensors that connect wirelessly to the hospital’s server. The devices record and transmit the patient’s data to a smart phone or tablet used by hospital staff to avoid human error and ensure the patients wellbeing. Before mobile