Connecting to the Holy Grail (Networking‪)‬

For decades, many careers and fortunes have risen and fallen in pursuit of a Holy Grail: Real-time plug-and-play medical device interoperability at the point of care and throughout the enterprise. Untold millions of dollars have been poured into one effort after another, or one technology or demonstration project after another, only to fizzle out when the resources dried up or the activity hit a wall--typically due either to vendor resistance or to care provider apathy. Yet another year has passed, and though there has been measurable progress, it is clear that all the needed pieces have yet to fall into place, begging the question: Are we truly any closer to the tipping point? In a recent Boston Globe article, (1) the need for highly integrated, seamless device connectivity, along with the potential improvements in patient safety, quality of care, and clinical workflow efficiency, was recognized. It too lamented the lack of progress toward this end, especially in this increasingly digital age, and suggested that perhaps the industry tipping point would result from a revolutionary killer application, much like the iPod in consumer electronics. Perhaps, but many fail to appreciate some of the fundamental difficulties and differences between medical device systems and those in other industries.