Mobile applications become essential in clinical practice.

-The market of the ‘ apps ’ addressed to health professionals is very fragmented and most are very specific or go to specialties or minority diseases

-in USA, Epocrates and Medscape Mobile have developed sophisticated clinical aid which have become indispensable for medical professionals, and more than half of American doctors uses them in his clinical practice

-A Spanish startup takes as its basis the experience gained in the U.S. market and preparing the launch of a mobile application in Spanish of the prescription and diagnostic aid for the doctor’s

-this tool will do measy ás the doctor daily clinical practice, will increase security in the diagnosis and prescription, especially patients polimedicados, and expedited the collaboration. The use of these helper applications in the U.S. at least avoids a potential medical error and saves 100 minutes of consultation each week

Madrid, March 2012.- the world market of medical applications for smartphones and tablets have multiplied during the year 2011 by 7 to $ 718 million, according to a report by the American firm market research2guidance. In Spain, the number of mobile medical applications available in the App Store has now reached 10,000. A figure that grows every day at an accelerated pace. Regardless of which only around 10 per cent combine the highest number of downloads, the market of the ‘ apps ’ professionals, aimed at doctors, is very fragmented. Many are very specific or go to pathologies or minority specialties.

In other countries as United States (USA), the success of these professional applications has come with the ability to integrate a greater number of basic needs to the doctor in a same tool. In particular, the experience of two ‘ apps ’ professionals, Epocrates and Medscape Mobile, has gained great importance in clinical practice. Over 350,000 physicians in the U.S. each of them currently in use. The first is a toolbox (compendium of different medical tools) and the second a medical portal which includes abundant information of reference and help for the professional. The rise of the same is compounded of Doximity, an exclusive community for doctors and health professionals which in its first seven months of life has achieved more than 30,000 medical users.

The penetration of these applications in the U.S. has soared in recent months and has now reached between 40 and 60 percent, depending on the medical specialty. According to a recent study by Manhattan Research, Epocrates is the most widely used mobile medical application and more than 80 percent of doctors consultation on your smartphone more than 12 times a week. In addition, 85 per cent of these consultations are carried out with the patient before or between patient visits.

In United Kingdom, in a context of greater relevance of health public, more similar to Spain, we can find another tool with a special impact. And it is that 90 percent of the doctors in this country already uses doctors.net.uk, a community closed for physicians whose offer is mainly based on discussion groups and medical training both online and on mobile.

Spain currently sits as a second country in Europe in penetration of smartphones, after Switzerland, with 33%, according to a recent study published by Google called Our Mobile Planet ”. For these reasons, and because of the diversity of medical applications adapted to our country, the startup iDoctus, founded by two Spanish entrepreneurs from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University, is working on the imminent launch of a medical application able to cover most of the basic needs of a doctor in Spainwith independent and peer-reviewed information in Spanish, licensing of content best doctors of the market.

The doctor need to have tools that simplify your work. To date, there is no mobile medical tool on Spanish that combine and cover the elements of information, updating and collaboration between medical ”, explained from the Technical Department of iDoctus.

The startup is collecting in a single application the functionality of Epocrates and Mescape Mobile, combining it with groups of discussion and collaboration among physicians, adapting it to the needs of our national health system. The objectives are to offer the physician a tool to facilitate the daily clinical practice and increase safety in the clinical decisions about diagnosis and treatment, thanks to quick access to the necessary information. These applications will help the doctor to reduce potential errors of diagnosis and prescription, and increase their productivity. In fact, the use of such helper applications in the US avoids at least one medical error and saves 100 minutes of consultation each week, as they point out from iDoctus.

The iDoctus platform is in testing phase closed beta and will soon be tested in a pilot study in hospital environment. The tool will provide a platform to help clinical with the patient before, decision-making at any time, place and device doctor (available for smartphones, tablets and web).

Is essential for the professional, especially to treat patients polimedicados, which are becoming more frequent. With applications like this, your doctor will be able perform a prescription more secure knowing quickly the dose of medication, or quickly check possible interactions between drugs. Simplifies the work and saves time ”, points out Dr. Sergio Vañó, attached to the dermatology service of Hospital Universitario Ramón y Cajal in Madrid and one of the researchers in the project iDoctus.

Very disaggregated in consultation material

The doctor in Spain, unlike the American or Anglo-Saxon, tends to have the consultation a compendium or guide of medicines on paper and a series of aid instruments that vary depending on the specialty. At the end, you have a whole series of very disaggregated material with a very high personal cost of navigation and search for the doctor. The idea is to insert everything in a single application so that all physicians of any specialty can use and serve them, moreover, as a means of communication, such as interconsultation, very useful between medicine primary and specialized, for example ”, says doctor Vañó.

In this sense, ensures that the perception of the patient in the consultation of the doctor in one of these applications, above all that of which takes a large number of drugs, it will be good. Is time that you dedicate to the patient, in his favour, either by consulting a book, calling other professional, looking at the computer or your mobile phone ”, concludes this dermatologist.