Rather, Google Glass and (other smartglasses manufacturers) are in a transitional stage. They're going from being consumer curiosities to bona fide professional tools — especially in the health-care industry.
One local physican — internist Dr. Laurie Rothman of Jupiter Internal Medicine Associates — has become an early adopter of Google Glass' medical potential.
She is the only doctor in South Florida, and among the first nationwide, to use Google Glass in her practice via Augmedix — a technology company whose software turns the device into everything from a stenographer/transcriber to a medical records-keeper.
"I've been using Google Glass with Augmedix since November, and now I can't imagine practicing medicine any other way," says Rothman.
No more note-taking
Rothman first recognized Google Glass' potential when she read in a professional journal about a surgeon who was using them to record his procedures and document his consults."That's when the light bulb went off for me," she explains. "They would enable me to spend more time interacting directly with my patients."
Rather than having her face stuck in front of a computer, or being preoccupied by writing notes she'd have to transcribe later, Rothman says she now is able to have "face-to-face conversations with my patients the entire time I'm with them."
This, she notes, makes her a "more efficient and effective doctor."
The smartglasses and Augmedix have also saved her untold hours of data entry and post-exam transcription.
"Since I started using them, I haven't had to do nearly as much 'homework'," she says.
How the technology works
Founded in 2012 by former Stanford University classmates Ian Shakil and Pelu Tran, the San Francisco-based Augmedix has developed, among other things, customizable software that both gathers pertinent patient records and transcribes conversations/information for physicians in real time.Physicians who use the Google Glass/Augmedix service have their patient consults video-streamed back to Augmedix's headquarters, so support staff can ensure that the software is functioning properly — but the video is never recorded.
When Rothman decided last year that she wanted to try the Google Glass/Augmedix service, "The company's representatives came here and spent two weeks getting to know all of my needs, habits and preferences."
That's how they were able to customize the software to the point that Rothman says, "The post-exam notes are written exactly in my style."
And, in contrast to the 2014 media reports of Google Glass wearers being accosted, Rothman says she's yet to have a patient object to them.
"They usually have one of two reactions: Either they don't care — or they're really interested and want to know more about how they work."
Perhaps the best indication of Google Glass' future viability for all doctors is Rothman's assertion, "I'm not a 'techie' at all — and I love them."
©2015 The Palm Beach Post (West Palm Beach, Fla.) Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
