The adoption of mobile applications in the medical field is increasingly prevalent among healthcare professionals. According to a 2014 Pharmacy and Therapeutics study, the greatest benefit of mobile apps in the healthcare field is the accessibility of point-of-care tools. While there is some push back by healthcare professionals to stick to traditional practices, the resources mobile apps provide continue to superior clinical decision making and improved client outcomes, according to the study.
Beyond clinical use, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said mobile apps help patients oversee, handle and maintain their overall health and wellness. Because the dependence on mobile apps has increased, the FDA has stepped in to provide guidelines to help regulate what is offered to the public.
As a traveling physical therapist, using apps as an addendum to your therapy is savvy because you will likely always be working in a different healthcare setting. These apps could provide go-to resources every day on the job.
Clinical use
As a PT, here are the most helpful apps to enhance your clinical tasks:
- This app easily and conveniently measures a patient's range of motion. It has an average rating of five stars in the Apple App Store and costs $4.99 to download.
- This free app puts the clock on your phone or tablet to shame with the capability to run five timers and a stopwatch simultaneously. Users are able to send the results via email, making it the perfect tool for working with patients.
PostureScreen: Posture, Body Fat & Movement Screen with Exercise
- Ticketed at $29.99, this app uses your phone or tablet's camera to evaluate posture. The examination goes further with an upgrade that unlocks movement analysis. The app is easy to use and goes as far as calculating posture deviations, according to a review by a doctor of physical therapy in Milwaukee.
Patient use
Here are some apps to help your PT patients:
- As a multiple-award-winning app, Skeletal System Pro II is available in the Apple App Store for $9.99. The Advance Healthcare Network for Physical Therapy and Rehab Medicine said the app is one of the greatest because it is all-encompassing and details human anatomy better than the majority of its competitors. Specifically, PTs use this app to explain skeletal conditions to patients.
Foot Decide, Knee Decide, Shoulder Decide and Spine Decide
- These apps are free as part of a handful of patient education apps by Orca Health, Inc. Each app isolates an individual body part and features a respective interactive model. Patients can look to the app for common therapy programs for their PT needs as a complement to in-office PT sessions.