CADILLAC — For Dr. Nelson Pou OBGYN is his specialty, and he believes strongly in the safety of his patients. That’s why the Mercy Hospital Cadillac physician says a new form of technology is the wave of the future.
“We’re using a new technology called telemedicine. We’re using it with i-Pad technology were we can actually monitor the patient, anywhere, everywhere,” says Dr. Pou.
The “telemedicine” that Dr. Pou refers to allows physicians to use their i-Pad or laptop to view pregnant patients’ ultrasounds even if they’re not physically with them. “It’s like having me there at all times, watching her progress and watching her baby, how the baby is doing and if anything goes wrong she knows I have an eye on her,” says Dr. Pou.
It’s this modern method that John Linderman, a registered nurse at Mercy Hospital Cadillac, says is critical especially when using a fetal heart rate monitor. “The care is going to be much safer for mother and the baby. It’s greatly increased the speed at which we can react to a strip where the baby might be in trouble,” says Linderman.
During his 18 years as a registered nurse, Linderman has seen the evolving health technology but says telemedicine means increased safety for patients right at a doctor’s fingertips. “The doctor could be looking at it real time or when we’re calling him. He might be already en route because he would have already seen the script. So, things we can start to do before the doctor even get there,” says Linderman.
“Safety is the word at the proper time…so, the better the communication the faster the response. In the old days we had to wait for a nurse now I can see it right away,” says Linderman.
Dr. Pou believes this digital upgrade could be the direction that medicine continues to go. “I think the i-Pad and computers are here to stay. Safety also implies less mistakes with this technology,” says Dr. Pou. “Whoever is on call has that immediate access to fetal heart-rate strips. It would make it easer for both of us to do our jobs,” says Linderman.
For more information about the technology that Mercy Hospital Cadillac is using click here for a direct link to their website.
