iPad 2.0 and Librarians

A stimulating article from the latest issue of TILT (IFLA):

“As more and more of our library clientele are becoming techno-savvy, librarians and other information professionals must not only keep abreast of the technology in order to assist them but must lead the charge. (…)

Many of the apps are “must haves” for librarians and information professionals that I will address later in this article including how the iPad 2.0 can be considered the “go to device” for librarians and information professionals.

Some suggestions of application:

– The iWorks suite should be at the top of every information professionals list. They can use iWorks for presentations, documents, and spreadsheets. iWorks is the equivalent to Microsoft Office

– Information professionals have access to exciting and informative courses on any topic imaginable through Apple’s iTunes U. They can subscribe to courses, take self-paced classes, and get access to learning materials from some of the most erudite scholars in education

– Information professionals can use Drop box for storing, retrieving and sending large files and can synchronize all of their Calendars through the Calendar application

– Librarians and information professionals can collaborate with colleagues all over the world using the Facetime and Skype applications.

Some of the popular Apps that librarians have recommended are included below. Top 10 iPad Apps for Librarians by Andy Burkhardt (Information Tyrannosaur) – http://andyburkhardt.com/2010/07/07/top-ten-ipad-apps-for-librarians/

Joiner, Ida A. iPad 2.0: Information Professionals Don’t Leave Home Without It! TILT (Trends and Issues in Libray Technologies), July 2012. Available from: http://ifla.intersearch.com.au/tilt_july2012/tilt_july2012.html#article5 [Accessed 9th July 2012]

What Physicians want from Pharma industry is D.I.G.I.T.A.L.!!

MedAdNews reports a study done by PTS:

“Well, according to the researchers at PTS, what physicians want is digital. On page four, the authors list ten key takeaways from their physician survey; of these, five are related to digital and another is an outcropping of the digital revolution. To wit:

2. Want more use of iPads in detailing

3. Want more electronic access to materials and representatives

4. Want less mailed print materials

7. Want  more HCP-focused Websites

8. 88% now own smartphones (vs. 70% in 2010), and 54% use iPads (or other tablets) in daily work

9. Doctors communicate with patients primarily via phone (70%), email (66%), and mail (46%) (…)

Field representatives are increasingly using iPads as their eVisual aid platform in their conversations with physicians. iPads are a clear hit with doctors; 82% of survey respondents want to see “more” or “significantly more” use of iPads or other tablets by representatives calling on their practices. (…)

Read further:

Slatko, Joshua. What physicians want? It’s spelled D-I-G-I-T-A-L. MedAdNews, April 2012. Available from: http://pharmalive.com/magazines/medad/view.cfm?articleID=11171 [Accessed 26th April 2012]

The original report: http://www.touchpointsolutions.com/whitepapers/wp-WhatPhysWant.html

Resource : Library goes mobile (integrating iPads)

A wonderful page of resources by the ALA:

http://www.alatechsource.org/blog/2012/03/continuing-the-conversation-integrating-ipads-and-tablet-computers-into-library-service

iPads and Health 2.0: a revolution?

A good summuary by Medical News Today:

Apple’s iPad is increasingly finding use in health and medicine, with applications ranging from giving individuals instant access to a wealth of reference, educational and personal health information, to helping hospitals streamline their operations, reduce labor costs, improve efficiency, and helping health professionals with analysis and diagnosis.

However, recent reports suggest the touch tablet devices could be doing more than was originally intended, driven by a pressure for change that is is coming from users, as health care providers seize the new tool with renewed passion, and demand more from the technologists.

Some business cases:

• iPads in Hospitals: Some hospitals have installed kiosks where patients, visitors and medical staff use the securely mounted touchscreen tablet to look up information
• iPads in Medical Education: Another environment that seems to have taken the iPad to its bosom is medical education. At first it was just a tool that students brought with them of their own initiative: but more and more medical schools are now switching to iPad as the main platform for delivering the curriculum.
• iPad’s Top Medical Apps: an impressive app is Medscape Mobile, a huge free resource from WebMD and available on several platforms, including iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, Android and Blackberry. It is the leading medical resource most used by healthcare professionals. “The amount of free content provided by Medscape is absolutely mind boggling and seems to continuously grow with each update. 7,000+ drug references, 3,500+ disease clinical references, 2,500+ clinical images and procedure videos, robust drug interaction tool checker, CME activities, and more.”
• iPads in Medical Imaging: Medical imaging is a field where one can see how the iPad may one day, and perhaps that day is sooner rather than later, go beyond helping teachers, students patients and doctors communicate more clearly, to being a diagnostic tool.
• The new iPad
• What next?

 

Paddock, Catharine. iPads in Health and medicine: more than an information Revolution? Medical News Today, 14th of March 2012, Available from:
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/242843.php [Accessed 21st of March 2012]

Students like iPad and Apps but do not purchase ebooks

In spite of constant media attention around new forms of technology and especially e-books students still appear to be reticent about embracing new technologies in their studies. (…)

The students in the group, who studied a range of subjects at universities in and around London, felt there was a constant push for them to move to digital but they were resisting it. Although respondents were seeing increasingly more iPads and e-readers at university and they expected more use of e-books in the future, they were unanimous in the hope that this wouldn’t come at the expense of face-to-face time and hard-copy texts. (…)

The students in the focus group said that they used a wide range of online sources and databases (mentions included JSTOR, Project MUSE, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Athens, Emerald journals, LexisLibrary, Westlaw UK, ISI Web of Knowledge and Inspiration). They also used search resources including Google Scholar and Wikipedia. However, it was startling (and distinctly disheartening to the publishers watching the group) how little the students bought digital study resources and e-books. (…)

Medical students had by far the greatest use of apps for their studies…

Read further:

Kedros, Jenny. Focus group reveals reticence about move to digital. Research Information, 28th of February 2012.
http://www.researchinformation.info/news/news_story.php?news_id=902

iPad: the pharma industry must gain a presence

In the latest issue of Pharmaceutical Executive:

“Pharma is not an industry known for launching headlong into new ideas and new ways of doing things—at least not without indulging in a considerable period of cautious study first. So its embrace of the iPad—both as a new sales tool and as a new way to communicate with and educate patients—stands out as somewhat anomalous. Granted, the sheer economic and cultural impact of the device, which was first released in April 2010, has been hard for any technologically focused industry to ignore: Apple sold 15 million iPads in the first nine months of launch. And its uptake among the medical profession has been particularly staggering. In May 2011, Manhattan Research reported that 30 percent of physicians in the U.S. already own an iPad, and this proportion will have already risen considerably, given that another 28 percent revealed they were planning to purchase one “in the next six months. (…)

But recognizing the iPad as a phenomenon and making a quick decision to embrace the hardware is just the beginning. The iPad revolution brings with it a new challenge, that of effective content creation… (…)

There are companies that appear to be getting it right, however. Johnson & Johnson’s psoriasis app for dermatologists and patients, which allows a quick and simple evaluation of the severity of their condition, has been averaging almost 60 downloads a day for well over a year. The reason for its success, explains Hunt, is that it is “pick-up-and-play, and immediately rewarding.”

On the sales/CRM side, Abbott‘s pilot app, developed by Oi, was successful because it was a “real closed loop solution,” says Ashley. In creating it, the agency went out with the sales reps to ascertain the various needs of the different clients: “It was a case of understanding that it wasn’t a matter of delivering a PowerPoint solution. The rep wants something that supports his conversation. (…)

Far from being a device to replace the sales rep, which has been one of the more hysterical reactions to the iPad, it serves to augment the relationship between reps and physicians. And the rep is more efficient in the relationship…

Read further at:

Upton, Julian. iPad Apps: are you content with your content? Pharmaceutical Executive, January 2012. Online:
http://www.pharmexec.com/pharmexec/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=755081&pageID=1&sk=&date=