Is GoogleGlass immortal?

Well, I do think so!     In a way.

Would you say that the Ford Model T is dead?

Or did it actually represent the beginning of a revolution, the evolution of transportation?

You see, lately, there has been a lot of press regarding the demise of GoogleGlass. A few articles have explained that the time of Glass has passed, that developers are not interested anymore, that units are for sale in eBay.

Some have called it “the Segway of this era!”. I have read most of those editorials and releases. I have to say that I don’t agree with the basic premise of GoogleGlass being a failure.

As any new step, the first one is always shy and careful…Glass represents the next generation, the beginning of the future for the wearable device. Again, the beginning of a revolution, the evolution of the computing and communication platform. It was not invented in a day!

As a “pioneer” device, a “pseudo-beta” product ( a ready-product, not ready for the general public but instead for a very select group of skilled individuals in specific disciplines), Glass has awaken the imagination and creativity of the technologic community, the industry and the geeks out there.

I think that we all like he idea of having a “wearable” device in our forehead, as part of us, almost integrated with our selves, able to allow us to stay connected in the ways that we need or like, to perform our specific tasks more efficiently.

Glass has done that. It has shown that it is possible, and that the road to an ideal and trouble-free device is still being travelled.

Yes, we all agree that GoogleGlass is not perfect, in fact, it is far from it.

But we all remember the amazement of the first time when we saw the screen projected in front of our eye, and the awesomeness of navigating a menu with our voice, or listening to it without a headphone.

We all concur that the battery is poor, the connectivity slow, the voice recognition fair to good, the heating issues feel wrong and that for the day-to-day routine, is definitively not ready…but that’s not the point.

Glass represents the leap to something better, to a way of not texting with our fat fingers, bending our neck down to a screen or bringing a hand up to our ears. A way to look up and tap into vast human knowledge, available in the internet, just by talking aloud.

Glass will allow us to stand up again (like humans do), to speak our commands, to look directly at the eyes of our patients, not turning our backs to them looking at the other screen, or typing orders in.

If anything, it will allow us to connect in a more direct, personal and human way, in those times when we have to use technology.

In a recent article, Noor Siddiqui, COO and co-founder of Remedy ( http://remedyonglass.com ) quoted:

“Google Glass broke through that mental block, and got doctors to rethink the big clunky computers in our offices… that maybe it would make for a better bedside relationship if we turned away from those computers and got close to our patients again,” Siddiqui said. “…And what’s great is, now that doctors are thinking that way, it’s not about Google Glass anymore.”

I trust that Google is working in the next generation of Glass, and I know that it will be better, and that the feedback and outcries of those with and without faith will be addressed in that next device.We will be surprised.

Let’s wait and see what the future is going to be like.

Embracing Technology for a Healthier Future

Once again, I really want to send a public note of appreciation to Maine Magazine (@Themainemag), for their recent article about my work. I think that Sophie Nelson (writer) and Nicole Wolf (photography) are amazing professionals that really represent some of the incredible talents that Maine has to offer.

I humbly want to thank them for their comments and views, and for helping spread some of my vision and passion regarding the potential for innovation technology in healthcare and education.

This is the link to the article:

The Maine Mag/ October, 2014

Telemedicine ALSO MAY Cuts Costs and Improve Outcomes in THE ACUTE CARE Management

I just finished reading a very interesting post by Nuviun Digital Health, from September 23rd, 2014. It was entitled “Telemedicine Cuts Costs and Improves Outcomes in Chronic Disease Management”

( http://nuviun.com/content/series/telemedicine-cuts-costs-and-improves-outcomes-in-chronic-disease-management)

I recommend reading it, to really get a quick overview of how remote presence medicine, or Telemedicine ( or mobile health, mHealth) is really having an impact in healthcare today. We are not talking so much about “potential”any longer, but about real progress and factual changes in outcomes BECAUSE of the use of this modalities.

As you all know, I’m a big proponent of the smart use and application of technology in Healthcare. I think that as communication technology exponentially evolves, and devices are becoming faster, smaller, less expensive and more user-friendly, they allow us to connect and communicate better in our daily lives. People use video-conference calls more commonly, rather that bringing their phones to their ears to just “hear’ someone, when instead they can “hear and see” the other person.

If this is the case in non-medical settings, it is just intuitive that professional disciplines like medicine, should make use of the same tools to improve the way we care for patients, the way we connect to providers, seek advice and provide expertise.

The device industry is barely waking up, and what we are seeing now is only the “tip of the iceberg”. Wearable devices like Google Glass, Epson Moverio, etc. are only examples of what is there to come, the first steps in the natural evolution of the platform of choice to connect and communicate ( Natural Evolution Up to GoogleGlass http://youtu.be/Psq-T2O0LDs )

Early developers, most of whom I had shared views and perspectives with, several months ago, such as Pristine (@PristineIO ), Augmedix (AugmedixINC ) and Droidres (@Droiders ), among others, are the true pioneers and visionaries of how this intuitive way to communicate could improve the interaction between providers-patients and the medical record, hence permitting a more fluid conversation which should allow for better care and outcomes.

Pristine grabs $5.4M to cure the doctor shortage and save lives with Google Glass

It is well accepted that Telemedicine and mHealth have clear roles in the setting of chronic disease. I argue that it has a place as important  in the improvement of acute care issues. Back in 2009, we at EMMC showed that a telemedicine program was well accepted by patients, referring and consulting providers, and that the potential for dollar savings and improved outcomes was real.

( https://www.facs.org/~/media/files/publications/bulletin/2011/2011%20june%20bulletin.ashx )

Be it in the non-emergent situations, chronic diseases (COPD, HTN, Heart disease or stroke, to name a few) or in the life-threatening conditions and moments, when a provider needs an answer quickly, or when an expert wants to share his or her insights to improve the patient’s care and potentially save a life, the role of wearable HUD (head up displays) telecommunication devices to improve the process of communicating remotely is plainly obvious.

http://vimeo.com/everdream/httpsflickrpp5x3yh

The way I see it, why use a written letter when you can use the phone? Why use a land-line telephone when you can use a smartphone? Why use a smartphone when you can use a video-phone? It just makes sense, despite the demands of proof, evidence, data or ROI.

This is just the beginning. Innovation in Healthcare is happening fast and it is unstoppable. Unstoppable because the current state of our system is unsustainable, due, among other factors, to exorbitant cost, lack of access, deficient communication and connectivity among key players (read provider-provider-patient-regulators-administrators and industry!) and shortage of expertise.

The smart application of technology can help us with this.

Simply, GOOGLE GLASS…in DIGITAL HEALTH, a health sensor & beyond

Well, NOT SO SIMPLE.

Once in a while, an electronic wonder comes along that shakes the status quo; a gadget that makes everything change, that rewires our thoughts and ideas and gives us hope for a possible better future, here and now.

Sometimes, it is not really just one device, but many-in-one, with multiple capabilities and features that excite the imagination of the users, explorers, problem-solvers or “wannabes”.

Do you remember the Swiss Army Pocket-knife?  

Let’s take Google Glass, for example; it is basically a wearable, smart-phone-like device, a communications tool. It allows you to make a phone-call (Glass-call, really), send a text message, e-mail and tweet. Taking photos, video (form the users point-of-view) and searching the Internet are also included. A formerly available feature, the video “Hangouts” and live video calls are not possible for now, but will return soon, and, reportedly, with much-improved quality.

All of these capabilities have, for the last year, inflamed the imagination of many people, among many disciplines, in my case, the field of Digital Health, Healthcare and Medical Education.

When I first saw Glass in live action, in the hands (forehead) of one of its inventors, Babak Parviz, at the Singularity University-FutureMed program 2013 (http://exponential.singularityu.org/medicine/ ), I immediately knew that this device had the potential to change the game, or even better, “creatively destroy” how the game was played.

I applied and got selected to the Google Glass Explorers program, while dreaming about its uses in my field of work; I was able to buy it very early last year, started using it, became amazed with its potential and possibilities, performed the FIRST surgical operation with Glass ever documented, (http://t.co/W0EJQy9U8s), and then, suddenly and spontaneously became an advocate for it, sort of an evangelist for the use of the device in Healthcare and Medical Education, as well as an advisor to many start-ups and individuals who saw in this technology a true, exponential breakthrough in the computing device platform. Alongside, gave three TEDx talks related to GoogleGlass in Healthcare and Education (http://youtu.be/fo3RsealvGI http://youtu.be/DVzkw7y4_u4 http://youtu.be/k_d0vfgBYm4

BUT we have yet to see, much beyond its intuitive applications.

The fact that Glass has a second camera that points towards the wearer’s eye, a forward camera, a microphone, a bone conduction audio transducer, a touchpad, a gyroscope, a GPS, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a magnetometer, an ambient light and proximity sensor and that it is head-mounted, in contact with the skin of the forehead, gives it incredible leverage to develop as a multi-tasking device in medicine.

Glass can detect you eye movements and hence its ability to translate those movements into commands. Imagine navigating your screen, texting, typing, etc. , just by looking to different directions. It might sound silly, but think of quadriplegics (a person paralyzed from the neck down), and how this feature could open marvelous opportunities for then to functionally reintegrate, back to life.

Some time ago, I tried “The Muse” (@ChooseMuse   www.choosemuse.com ) and also became fascinated with it. It is basically a portable, wearable EEG (Electro-encephalogram, to detect, read and display your brain waves). It just works! You put it on, sync it with the app in your smartphone, and it displays an indirect measurement of your brain’s electrical activity. Plain amazing! Just imagine the potential to help you “train” your brain, to learn to focus, relax, meditate, provide biofeedback, etc.  Think PTSD therapy! http://youtu.be/YI5uXlTnNms

And then, I thought, this goes pretty much in the same position, in your forehead were Glass usually sits; how about integrating Google Glass + Muse, and add this incredible feature to the mix?

How about navigating the Glass menu with your brain’s electrical activity? (Think: “OK Glass, take a picture”!). Or train your brain, again with instant feedback, to give commands and navigate a computer screen menu. http://youtu.be/ogBX18maUiM

Then, a few days ago, I read and article and watched a video, from a group in MIT/Georgia Tech, who is developing the fantastic idea to use the many embedded systems within Glass (the gyroscope, the magnetometer, the accelerometer, etc.), to basically provide accurate measurements of heart frequency and breathing rate (BioGlass). In addition to the obvious uses in medicine and fitness, this functionality could potentially detect your alertness and anger levels, whether you are falling asleep or not paying enough attention.

Now you could be relaxing and slowing your brain’s activity, and getting immediate feedback on your cardiac and respiratory rates…Awesome. A yogi’s dream!   http://youtu.be/-t4PkEbowJg

As a surgeon, I also envision its uses in medical care, allowing patients, and providers, the right state of mind to undergo a procedure, to control pain with drug-free anesthesia or analgesia, to perform a procedure in a relaxed state, taking away pain, stress and frustration…

There’s another very clever gadget that allows your forearm muscles’ electric activity to be translated into commands to drive your electronics, and navigate their menus, allowing you to use hand gestures instead of a touch pad or a mouse; it’s called “The Myo”. WWW.thalmic.com

For sometime now, I’ve been playing with it and engaging with developers who are kindly sharing their software “spells” and abilities to help me trial and evaluate an integrated Glass-Myo interface.  http://youtu.be/b8xGfzoP58E

I can go thru the Glass menu and screens just by moving my hand. Since this device “reads’ the electrical signals at the muscle level, then it potentially can act as an EMG (Electromyogram), and not just read but also evaluate muscular activity (think of the many muscular disorders that could benefit from this); couple this with The Muse, and you come up with a tool to give instant brain feedback related to muscular contraction and movement (Tai-Chi on steroids!), allowing the training, re-training and/or tuning of a particular group of muscles.

As I have said many times before, I think that Google Glass represents the beginning of the natural evolution of the computer (computing) platform.

Technology develops and progresses exponentially.

Google Glass use and applications are only limited by our creativity and imagination, and only the future will tell what’s possible and Beyond.

Stay put and don’t change the channel.

Thanks for reading.

Best,

Rafael Grossmann, MD, FACS

Follow in Twitter @ZGJR for more updates and to contact me.

www.linkedin.com/in/rafaelgrossmann/

 

 

“OK Glass: hand me the scalpel, please…” GoogleGlass during surgery!

Obviously, one of the MAIN concerns regarding the use of Google Glass during surgery, with live streaming of data, would be to take every measure and to ensure the privacy of the patient’s health information (PHI).

That’s exactly what I did. Not only I obtained informed consent about what we were going to attempt (and documented it), but most importantly, made sure that no recording or transmission of any identifying information was done. The streaming of video and photos, to “myself” thru Google Glass, did not reveal any PHI, or even show the patient’s face.

By performing and documenting this event, I wanted to show that this device and its platform, are certainly intuitive tools that have a great potential in Healthcare, and specifically for surgery, could allow better intra-operative consultations, surgical mentoring and potentiate remote medical education, in a very simple way.

To my knowledge, this is the first time that Google Glass has ever been used during live surgery, by a surgeon, and Glass Explorer, with streaming of non-identifying patient information thru a Google Glass Hang-Out.

The patient involved needed a feeding tube (Gastrostomy) and we chose to placed it endoscopically, with a procedure called PEG (Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy. You can Google that to learn more…). Being the first time, I wanted to do this during a simple and commonly performed  procedure, to make sure that my full attention was not diverted from taking excellent care of the patient.

I arranged for a Google Hang-Out (HO) between my Glass and a Google account I created ahead of time for this very purpose.

The connection is remote. The iPad used as a receiver was just yards away, but it could have been practically thousands of miles away.

Before starting the operation, I briefly recorded myself explaining the planned event, and once again, talked about the importance of not revealing any PHI.

I had Google Glass on at all times, with the HO active thru-out the procedure. The live video images that I saw thru Glass, were projected in the iPad screen, remotely.  We kept the volume down on purpose. We tried to keep it very simple (the KISS principle!) and straight forward. As I said, even the procedure was a simple one.

I was able to show not just the patient’s abdomen, but also the endoscopic view, in a very clever, simple and inexpensive way. I think that there should be ways to directly stream the endoscopic view thru Google Glass ( My friend @Julianmb, also a Google Explorer, and his team of experts from @Droiders are working on that !) but this was a “Poor’s Man’s” set up…

The whole thing was fairly quick and went very well. We used “home-made” techniques, so the pictures and video are not optimal, but I think the point stands: Google Glass Streaming During Live Surgery…By  a Glass Explorer Surgeon…IS POSSIBLE.

OK Glass: hand me the scalpel, please” !

For other links on disruptive Healthcare Innovation, watch TEDx talks, TEDx Dirigo 2011 “iPodTeletrauma, the $229, 130 million sq. ft. Trauma Room, in your pocket”,

TEDx Bermuda 2013: “OK Glass: I need a surgeon http://youtu.be/fo3RsealvGI

TEDx Dirigo 2013 : “OK Glass”:Disrupt HC http://youtu.be/DVzkw7y4_u4