I’ll admit, I’m kind of a fan girl for all things Google (if you didn’t notice with my recent excitement about , or how I tend to favor Android apps.) So, of course, I think that Google Glasses sound really exciting. And when I first heard about them, I wondered if they had a place in healthcare.

It looks like others .

To me, it would make sense for Google Glasses to be used in the healthcare world. It could be the next step for fitness devices. Doctors could potentially use it, as could medical students. The article from above listed the following ideas that seemed most plausible (these descriptions are directly from the article):

  •  Video sharing and storage: Physicians could record medical visits and store them for future reference or share the footage with other doctors.
  • A diagnostic reference: If Glass is integrated with an electronic medical record (EMR), it could provide a real-time feed of the patient’s vital signs.
  • A textbook alternative: Rather than referring to a medical textbook, physicians can perform a search on the fly with their Google Glass.
  • Emergency room/war zone care: As storied venture capitalist Marc Andreessen , consider ”dealing with wounded patients and right there in their field of vision, if they’re trying to do any kind of procedure, they’ll have step-by-step instructions walking them through it.” In a trauma situation, doctors need to keep their hands free.
  • Helping medical students learn: , a surgeon might live stream a live — and potentially rare — surgery to residents and students.
  • Preventing medical errors: With an electronic medical record integration, a nurse can scan the medication to confirm whether it’s  the correct drug dose and right patient.

It seems as if this is only the beginning. Of course, Google Glasses aren’t going to come cheap, but I feel it could really revolutionize healthcare.

What possibilities do you see between Google Glasses and Healthcare?

May 20, 2013 I Written By

Katie Clark is originally from Colorado and currently lives in Utah with her husband and son. She writes primarily for Smart Phone Health Care, but contributes to several Health Care Scene blogs, including EMR Thoughts, EMR and EHR, and EMR and HIPAA. She enjoys learning about Health IT and mHealth, and finding ways to improve her own health along the way.

Smartphone’s are everywhere now, and hospitals are no different.  They are used for sending messages, for finding doctors and nurses, and even for updating and accessing patient medical records.  Google is looking to take the whole thing to the next level.

There are with an integrated computer and camera by the end of the year.  I remember thinking that the old Oakleys that had a mp3 player were pretty cool, but this idea is way beyond playing some music.

The mentions a couple of applications this could have in the medical field, but the possibilities are practically endless.  Surgical assist, and mentoring from afar are two of the applications they mention that seem to have the most promise.

There have already been great advancements in these areas with the improvement of cameras and viewing monitors in operating rooms.  Having a computer literally strapped to your eyes would be an incredible asset to any surgeon.  It would also do amazing things in learning environments.

Surgeons would have access to not only x-rays and other images, but they would have access to massive databases of information to perform a standard operation.  Maybe more importantly, they would have that access in those situations that were not expected.

Doctors are incredibly busy people even when they are already occupied with a surgery or other procedure.  Having a device like these glasses would allow doctors to pause and take care of other issues without having to stop the procedure completely.

iMedicalApps is also sponsoring a contest to see who can come up with the most creative use of these glasses.  Of course they are still in development, and mostly a rumor at this point, but it does provide some very interesting opportunities in any number of fields.

I would love to hear about any ideas you may have of how these glasses can be used in any number of industries.

March 1, 2012 I Written By