New iPhone App Grants Mobile Access to EHRs

The latest mobile medical powers for the iPhone include the ability to remotely access patients' electronic health records with a new application called Allscripts Remote.

The application, called Allscripts Remote, was developed by Allscripts-Misys Healthcare Solutions. The application gives physicians the ability to access a patient's health records directly from their iPhone or iPod Touch. Having mobile access to health records means that doctors will be able to make informed decisions remotely.

According to Allscripts-Misys Healthcare Solutions, capabilities include quick access to real-time patient summary information; fast communication to local hospital emergency rooms; convenient ePrescribing to the patient's regular pharmacy; and real-time access to all the information a physician needs to make decisions, including medical history, lab results, and medications.

Glen Tullman, Chief Executive Officer of Allscripts, said in a prepared statement, "Physicians are quick to adopt technology that delivers clear benefits to their patients while making their own lives easier. For any physician who uses iPhone or plans to, there's no better way to connect to real-time information and new capabilities that not only make it easier for them to make informed clinical decisions, but save them time. It's all about connecting."

The one drawback to Allscripts Remote--and it's a big one--is that the hospital, clinic, or practice where the doctors work must already take advantage of Allcripts' other services. The prime candidates are Enterprise or Professional editions of Allscripts' Electronics Health Records. Without those already in place, Allscripts Remote isn't going to go very far on its own.

Larry Glazerman, MD, Assistant Professor and Director of Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgery at the University of South Florida College of Medicine in Tampa, Florida, attests, "When I get a call from a patient at 3AM, I no longer have to guess who she is, what medications she's on, and what problems she has because I have all the information at my fingertips instantly. If I need to send her to the ER, I can send the information and my notes to the ER physician with the push of a button. I can also check my schedule and sign off on tasks virtually anywhere, at any time."

If your practice or organization is already an Allscripts customer and has physicians who are constantly on the move, Allcripts Remote may be a good product to effect change in how you deal with patient information when out of the office.