A Risk-Based Classification of Mobile Applications in Healthcare

Abstract

Mobile devices and applications are becoming popular in today’s society. The number of applications available to both the patient and the healthcare provider is changing the way healthcare is being delivered and consumed. The integration of mobile devices into every-day lives is driving the changes in healthcare. While all areas of medicine are being impacted, changes are mostly of chronic care, long term care and any place that causes a need for constant data, monitoring or training. The acceptance of mobile devices by healthcare consumers within wide range of age and socioeconomic circumstances is reason to look at mobile technology as the future of healthcare. While increased use of mobile applications are welcomed by most providers and consumers alike, there is a need to systematize the study of its use. The authors provide a framework for considering mobile applications in healthcare, based on their risk-profile. They accomplish this by first identifying and classifying the mobile healthcare applications.