Having a child undergo surgery can be nerve-wracking. So Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children in Orlando, Fla., has devised an app to help with that.
EASE—which stands for Electronic Access to Surgical Events—allows patients' families and caregivers to get updates about their loved ones' surgeries.
In the operating room, a circulating nurse types out updates or sends pictures detailing the progress of a patient's surgery. And, since images and texts automatically delete after 45 seconds, patient privacy and security are ensured as well.
“It's the fear of the unknown that we're answering” for patients, said Dr. Kevin de la Roza, one of the app's co-creators.
Emily and Calvin Barr Sr. got more than half a dozen texts during a recent operation on their 8-year-old son, Calvin Barr Jr. “I admit, I wasn't sure about the idea at first,” Emily Barr said, “but being able to get that information has been very good. We could see what was going on and constantly knew his status, and that's been very reassuring to us.”
