5 Ways Mobile Tech Can Improve Your Health

Edna Boone | Mashable | June 1, 2012

Edna Boone is the senior director of mHIMSS, the mobile health initiative behind HIMSS, the non-profit devoted to the improvement of health through technology. Join the mHIMSS LinkedIn group, and follow her @mHIMSS.

Just a decade ago, if someone had said that Steve Jobs would have a huge effect on how medical professionals administer care, that prediction would have been met with an eye roll. But the reality is people increasingly access healthcare services via mobile, or “mHealth.” The result: Mobile is having a transformative effect on the way physicians and nurses care for patients. It’s also impacting how consumers manage their own health and well-being.

Unconvinced? The following statistics might change your mind.

  • By the end of 2012 mHealth apps will have been downloaded 44 million times. By 2016, that number is expected to increase to 142 million downloads.
  • By this summer, 13,000 consumer health apps will be available for download on the iPhone. About half of those (6,000) are for medical professionals.
  • More than 80% of physicians own a mobile device, compared to 50% of the general U.S. population...