Yes, the pen is mightier than the sword. Now it's a pretty cool microphone, too.
Anoto and NextGen are joining forces on a digital pen that can not only store and convert handwriting and drawings into structured data, but also take voice dictation and integrate that into a patient's health record.
Called the NextPen Voice, the device adds dictation to the previous generation’s writing and drawing capture functionality to enable users to store data in either digital or voice format, depending on clinical examination protocols, preferences and specialties, the companies said.
The NextPen is designed to enable clinicians to capture patient data without the need of a computer, laptop or tablet and in any setting, from the hospital to the clinic to the patient's home. In digital form, the pen uses Anoto and Livescribe technology to capture handwriting via a miniature camera, recording every stroke and automatically routing the content for dictation, which can then be sent to the patient's electronic medical record. By tapping the pen, the doctor can switch to voice mode and dictate, with the recorded audio integrated into the patient's records.
Claiming it can save providers 10 or 15 minutes per patient, Roy Feague, NextGen’s vice president of development, said the pen is especially useful during reception and intake. “Many clients report saving up to two hours per day,” Feague added in a prepared statement.
Stein Revelsby, Anoto's CEO, in the release, said in the release that the NextPen enables users to “combine productivity, accuracy and care in the practice of medicine.”
NextGen and Anoto debuted the new pen at NextGen Healthcare Information Systems' 13th Annual User's Group Meeting this week in Las Vegas.
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