via HealthCareGlobal.com

BYOD and mobile device technology are poised to transform healthcare, an industry often accused of being resistant to change. When lives are at stake, anything that eliminates boundaries between healthcare providers and their patients or colleagues is a critical development. The steady growth of mobile technology in this industry promises to do just that – make sure doctors and nurses are within reach and have access to the information they need at all times.

A primary element of these changes is healthcare workers using their personal mobile devices, such as smart phones and tablets, to access applications that enable them to deliver care whenever and wherever it’s needed. Doctors and nurses are transforming into a truly modern mobile workforce, championing BYOD in healthcare.

In addition to improving care and cutting costs, BYOD improves the quality of life for healthcare workers by allowing greater flexibility, productivity and user experience.

Here are 10 primary ways mobile technology is empowering healthcare providers:

• Receiving patient alerts while on-the-go with smartphones. Doctors can be immediately reachable for patient emergencies.
• Tracking hospital rounds and patient progress on tablets.
• Consulting specialists from anywhere using mobile video conferencing.
• Using apps to reference information in online drug and anatomy guides from anywhere. Caregivers can be sure they’re referencing up to date information.
• Leveraging mobile diagnostic tools to do remote consults with patients. Lab results can be delivered to physicians on all their devices, while patient vitals can be monitored long distance.
• Monitoring home healthcare aide location and workflow with GPS, helping track arrivals and departures for more efficient service.
• Accessing high-resolution medical imaging like X-rays and CT scans on tablets.
• Capturing photos and adding them directly to patient records remotely.

Globally, BYOD adoption varies widely. European countries have the lowest adoption rates, and are only half as likely as US companies to permit BYOD.

Among leading nations, rates of employees using mobile devices in the workplace is a slightly more even. A 2012 Cisco study, surveying 5,000 companies in 18 countries, showed promising mobile workforce adoption across the board globally. In total, 47% of employees in the companies surveyed were officially designated “mobile workers,” while 60% use a mobile device for work. Here is a breakdown by country.

The graph below charts the top reasons cited by BYOD employees worldwide for using their own devices. The leading reason is a desire to work any time from anywhere.

Finally, we have the number of connected devices per knowledge worker. As you can see, we’re in the middle of a rapid growth period. The mobile workforce is multiplying!

“I feel like we are on the cusp of a similarly fundamental shift in business software. Once again, the change is about rethinking business applications, but this time it is with a mobile lens. When talking with companies that don’t have a specific mobile strategy, I keep hearing about how mobile is just a feature of cloud-based applications. Yet when we meet with entrepreneurs who are building “mobile-first” business apps, we can see a completely different way of thinking: Leveraging the unique capabilities of mobile devices is at the core of every decision they make.”

The excerpt above is from a recent guest post on GigaOM written by Kevin Spain of Emergence Capital Partners. In the post, Kevin discusses the growth of mobile business applications and outlines the different approaches and sectors these apps fall into – which you can see in the chart below:

It’s an interesting collection of companies, and you can find Lua in the ‘Productivity’ section.

Check out the complete article on GigaOM

“BYOD strategies are the most radical change to the economics and the culture of client computing in business in decades,” said David Willis, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner, in a release. “The benefits of BYOD include creating new mobile workforce opportunities, increasing employee satisfaction, and reducing or avoiding costs.”

Gartner believes that while BYOD is occurring in companies and governments of all sizes, it is most prevalent in midsize and large organizations ($500 million to $5 billion in revenue, with 2,500 to 5,000 employees). BYOD also permits smaller companies to go mobile without a huge device and service investment. Adoption varies widely across the globe. Companies in the US are twice as likely to allow BYOD as those in Europe, where BYOD has the lowest adoption of all the regions. In contrast, employees in India, China and Brazil are most likely to be using a personal device, typically a standard mobile phone, at work.

Left: John Hickey – Mobile Program Manager for DISA

The Defense Department is taking broad steps to revamp its mobile workforce policies. The agency is increasing resources for the mobility arm of the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) and is committed to figuring out how mobile technology can take its efforts to the next level. This development, along with more information illuminating the changing role of mobile technology in government is outlined in a recent Fed Tech article.

With so many people working primarily in the field, the Defense Department is in many ways, a perfect candidate for mobile overhaul.

John Hickey, program manager for mobility at the DISA, stands behind the idea that “as we shift to a more mobile workforce, just about everyone will be mobile, regardless of rank, role or mission.” While arming soldiers in combat with better mobile technology is certainly part of the plan, the idea extends beyond the battlefield. Hickey intends to have all employees, including those stateside, working on tablets and smartphones to support the organization. John Hale, DISA’s chief of enterprise applications, explains that for these employees stateside, his organization is also focused on promoting telework and expanding mobility range to as many employees as possible.

The Fed Tech article also goes into the mobile practices of other federal agencies, such as the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), which currently supports over 3500 mobile workers in 280 locations.

Read the full article HERE

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is making a name for itself, staying on the cutting edge of tech policy changes in the government. It recently instituted a BYOD policy for its employees, and was able to cut mobility costs by 50% in 2013.

It seems as though some other government agencies have taken notice. Several of them, including the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Agriculture Department, are now running BYOD pilots.

In this exclusive interview with Federal Technology Insider, Kimberly Hancher, the CIO of the EEOC goes into detail about her implementation of BYOD and its results.

See the original interview HERE. For a more detailed brief, check out the White House BYOD Toolkit information about this EEOC initiative.

What was the driver behind the BYOD pilot program at the EEOC?

Hancher:  Several years back, I attended a conference where leaders from the private sector were sharing their leadership challenges and key learnings in the emerging BYOD arena.  During this time, we were facing a 15 percent IT budget reduction and I realized that I had to take some risks and think outside of the box.

Some have said that a BYOD policy does not result in a costs savings. How were you able to achieve some pretty significant reductions?

Hancher:  We took a two-pronged approach in addressing the reduction of costs.  Our first strategy was to look at the rate plans for our government-owned devices, and we found out that we were paying much more than we needed to.  Through analysis and re-plan optimization, which involved sharing minutes and putting smart phones on the correct plans based on usage patterns, we were able to reduce costs close to 30 percent.

The second step was to reduce the number of devices in use.  As such, we tapped into the community of employees that used both personal and government devices, and allowed them to opt-out of the Blackberry program and return their work devices.  From there, we synchronized their personal devices through our mobile device management system

Often when people talk about the benefits of a BYOD program they list boosts in productivity and morale as key successes. Did you find this to be the case?

Hancher:  Many users enjoy the functionality and familiarity associated with their personal smartphones and prefer to use one device. This helped increase productivity.  We also found that these users were more likely to work or be more responsive to email and other communications after hours.

Many agencies seem hesitant to embrace BYOD because of security, technical or legal concerns. How did EEOC overcome these challenges? 

Hancher:  We made sure to include our legal counsel in the development of this program.  As we were writing out the rules of behavior and program requirements, we also spent a considerable amount of time developing the privacy terms.  We found that government devices have no expectations of privacy.  For personal devices, we would require access to the device if there was ever a civil or criminal concern.

In addition, each participant had to go through training and sign a privacy document before taking part in the program.

Are there other best practices / lessons learned that other agencies should consider?

Hancher: First, I would create an advisory group to support the IT organization, which would be a cross section from across an entire agency so you can hear from different constituencies.  In addition, the IT organization, along with the privacy officer, should determine just how sensitive the data is that people access through personal devices.

Our agency does not deal with classified data, nor do we have information about infrastructure that would be of interest to terrorist organizations.  No matter the level or type of data, security has to be at the forefront of any implementation considerations.  This includes requiring complex passwords that expire regularly, along with the ability to wipe the device remotely.  In addition, the agency security team should be a part of the advisory group.

This video captures a great example of the mobile workforce in action somewhere you might not expect. Monday Night Football is something many of us enjoy, but don’t consider what happens behind the scenes.

As you can see in the video, the production of MNF essentially entails bringing what you would put in a major network television studio on the road, setting up week after week in different cities, and then moving on to the next stop.

A video from the folks at AppBeat, discussing how smartphones, tablets and mobile enterprise apps can improve a your bottom line, internal collaboration, and all around effectiveness.

The Journey Toward Oahu

In May 1795, King Kamehameha I’s troops set off for the island of O’ahu, aiming to unify the Hawaiian islands under one rule. As depicted in our mural, their approach toward the island carries great significance. It preceded one of the most important battles in Hawaiian history, known as the Battle of Nu’uanu. The battle began as soon as Kamehameha’s troops landed on the shore of O’ahu and raged for days. Using the Hawaiian martial art called Lua, Kamehameha’s army outmaneuvered the enemy, eventually forcing the troops of O’ahu to retreat toward a dead-end overlooking a 1,000 foot drop. Over 400 O’ahu warriors jumped or were pushed off the cliff and Kamehameha was victorious, leaving just the island of Kauai outside of his control.

Kahekili II

Kamehameha I’s father, was the 25th king of Maui. He was named after the Hawaiian god of thunder, who was believed to be black on one side. Because of this, Kahekili tattooed one side of his body completely black from head to foot. He was the last independent king of Maui, and during his he reign, he conquered and ruled over every island in the chain but the Big Island.  In the early days of Kamehahema I’s campaign, he faced his father on the battlefield. After Kahekili II passed, his son continued his legacy.  Kamehameha I officially united the island chain for the first time in history and created the Kingdom of Hawai’i in 1810.

Ku Totem

Our last mural is a totem of the Hawaiian god Ku. His significance is complex. Both the god of prosperity and the much-feared god of war, it is said that Kamehameha prayed to Ku and received guidance from him on his campaign to unite the Hawaiian islands. Ku is “The Terrifying God” and “The Benevolent Face,” demanding human sacrifice while also guiding fisherman to their next catch.

Below the totem is Ku’s full name: “Ku-ka-ili-moku.”

BYOD is on the rise in 2013, and connectivity seems to be its largest roadblock. However, this hurdle is quickly diminishing as the number of global public Wi-Fi hotspots skyrockets. The most recent iPass quarterly study on the “Global Mobile Workforce” reported these findings, among many others.

The report examines: Wi-Fi growth, Evolution of BYOD, Mobile Worker Devices, and Mobile Data Usage. Here are a few of the report’s statistical findings:

• Most mobile workers are within range of a Wi-Fi network for at least 11 hours per day.
• There will be 5.8 million public Wi-Fi hotspots by 2015
• A majority of mobile workers said they would choose either the iPhone or iPad if they had one device for work

Check out the full report HERE