What is Mobile Doula and how does it differ from other software for Doulas, Certified Doulas, DONA or CBCs?
More Accessible
Since Mobile Doula is an iPad app with a cloud, your data is always with you AND always backed up to a secure cloud location. Therefore, it works even without an internet connection. Not being able to access your existing client records or create new clients when visiting a home or hospital can be real problematic. If you are at a home or hospital where there is no internet access, or you are at a birth center and there is a brown out or internet outage, Mobile Doula works just the same.

PAPERLESS
Another major difference between Mobile Doula and other software is that you can truly go not only PAPERLESS, but you can possibly toss your scanner and printer (or just place it in the attic where all your other old technology gathers dust). This is possible for several reasons. The first being that the client can write their signature on all of the documents and consent form right on the iPad. This is a legal signature. The home sales, car sales and retail industry is quickly adopting electronic signatures across the board for not just receipts but lengthy legally binding documents. Most Doulas will have their clients visit the client portal before the first visit. If the client was unable to then the Doula can hand the iPad to the customer after placing it in lock mode and the customer will then not only fill out all their info and write their signature on documents, but they are directed to take pictures of themselves, their driver's license and insurance card!

Faster
One more major benefit of Mobile Doula is that since it is an app there are no delays when switching between tabs in the app. You can quickly tap through the application with almost immediate response time.

More Stable
Virtually no medical professionals rely on an EHR that is dependent on something as unstable as the internet. The internet can go down because of radio interference, local power outages, power outages anywhere between your city and the city the web servers run, routine maintenance by your ISP, maintenance or unexpected hardware failures on the web servers, weather, acts of terrorism and so much more. It's just a matter of time when a situation presents itself where there is no internet access and a life or death need for your patient's records.

More Secure
Lastly, Mobile Doula is more secure then web-based solutions. At Mobile EHR Inc we also built and host many websites for many companies. We know first-hand that nearly 50% of all web traffic is from hackers trying to break into website to get YOUR identity information. They have very sophisticated automated password crackers that literally attempt to guess your passwords and login to your banking and health record sites 24/7. Exposing your sensitive information to the internet allows billions of people on the planet to potentially steal your data. There are countless viruses that spread to millions of computers every day that track every key you press on your keyboard to capture your passwords. We can go on and on about the security issues with both the PC and the internet but you probably get the picture by now. With an iPad app solution however, you are much safer as it is a known fact that there have been ZERO viruses discovered on the iPad ever. That means no hacker is catching your keys or reading your cookies or taking screenshots of your computer. No hacker can break into your web-account, because you don't have one! If a hacker were to steal your iPad you can log into www.icloud.com and erase all of the data on your iPad with a click of a button. You definitely can't do that with a laptop, not unless you are some super high-tech computer buff anyway :)


Is there a way to fax client records to the doctor or hospital?
Yes, you can print/fax/e-mail a Client's record by pressing the action button located in the upper right-hand corner of every screen in Mobile Doula. A form will appear that will allow you to select which areas of the client record you want to be included in the export. There are faxing services you can subscribe to such as Hello Fax that allow you to send any document to a special email they give you and it will automatically fax the document to any phone number you place in the subject line. You can also get the iPad's iFax app.


Is it possible to add or remove fields in Mobile Doula?
Yes, you can! We designed Mobile Doula with flexibility in mind. You can add or remove several fields to any of the forms for no charge. We can add text boxes, drop down boxes, stepper controls (number fields with + and - buttons), Yes/No buttons (you can pick any text other than Yes or No such as Normal/Abnormal) and more. You just tell us what form you want it on and after which other field you want it to be placed on that page.

You can also create your own document templates by emailing a PDF to yourself and then opening it in the Templates section of Mobile Doula. Then you can drag & drop text boxes, check boxes, signature boxes and initial boxes anywhere on the document. Then if you define that template as a Standard document, it will be presented to patients while they follow the 6 step add client process.


Is there a way to upload labs or other documents and attach them to a client's chart?
This is easy on the Mac. It can also be done on the iPad or iPhone pretty quickly by emailing any PDF document to yourself. Then open that email on the iPad and then tap or tap & hold to open the PDF attachment in Mobile Doula. You can then attach that PDF to any patient by navigating to the Documents tab under the patient and pressing the "add document" button.


Is there a scheduling calendar?
Yes, Mobile Doula integrates with your Contacts and Calendar. At the press of a button you can add each client to your contacts with their picture, phone numbers, EDD, partner's name, birth date and more. Also, a calendar icon is located at the top of the screen when in the visits section. When you press the calendar button it will show upcoming appointments let you create an appointment on your Calendar. You can use the standard Apple iCloud calendar however we recommend setting up a Gmail address and using the free Google calendar because of its robust sharing features and appointment reminders. Once you configure your Calendar under the iPad Settings->Mail you will be able to schedule and view appointments from within Mobile Doula.

Online booking and scheduling
If you are looking for a calendar that is more robust then the free iCloud or Google Calendars then we recommend SetMore or AppointmentPlus. They are fully featured online booking systems that have all the features of Google Calendar plus provide a web front end that you can provide a link to from your website that clients can access to schedule, change or cancel appointments. They allow you to easily change all your appointments if a birth comes up and even take payments online. They have free plans for low volume users.


Does it matter which iPad I have/purchase?
Mobile Doula will work on any iPad that supports iOS 13. Generally speaking, this is any iPad released within the last 5 years. The iPad Mini, iPad Pro, iPad Air and iPad are all great options and are users love them all.

The 32GB Wi-Fi Only iPad is only $329 and is exactly what we recommend. Most practices will never use more than 5GB over the course of many years. There is no need to get cellular data access because it adds an expensive monthly fee and there is no need for it since the app works just as well without a data connection.


Will there ever be a version available for the PC or Android tablets?
Being an iPad app enables Mobile Healthcare to be a paperless solution with built-in scanning and document signing. It is also what enables our app to be fully functional even when no WiFi is available which can be very important during a home visits. A tablet is also much more transparent during client visits. It’s also always with you and very portable. Our tablet based graphical interface enables you to chart entire prenatal visits without typing a single word. By taking advantage of touch gestures, multi-selection and touch screen controls Mobile Lactation Consultant captures nearly every bit of information in an intuitive manner that is almost transparent so you can focus on your client instead of a mouse, keyboard and computer screen. While we could enable functionality in our existing web-based client portal to provide total access to your Mobile Lactation Consultant client records, this is not safe. To have hundreds of client records with private health information, birth dates, address, phone numbers and social security numbers all behind a single user name and password is a recipe for disaster.

Why PCs are a liability
Windows computers are FULL of viruses, spyware and malware that read your file data, capture your keystrokes, and take screenshots and send them to hackers. As opposed to the fact that there has never been one single virus on an iPad. It is our opinion at Mobile Midwife EHR that computers that are exposed to the World Wide Web are unfit for EMR/EHR applications. Nearly every professional EMR/EHR (not the free ones) on the market today are installed in the Hospital or Doctor's offices with no way to connect them to the Internet. Many businesses today such as banks, insurance companies and even retail companies such as Home Depot or Fed Ex Kinkos no longer even run internet access to the building.

Why Android tablets are unacceptable
Android tablets are insecure for much of the same reasons that PCs are insecure. Read why Android malware is on the rise. Their file system is open for any App to read. Any App can do almost anything such as take screenshots, capture keystrokes, read another Apps data or monitor your web traffic. Apple's iPhone and iPad on the other hand are locked down and each App operates in its own sandbox. Also, no App can be installed or even copied to the file system without going through the rigorous Apple App Store review process. Finally, the stability of the iPads operating system is far superior to that of the Android and stability is a number one priority for any EHR/EMR software company.


What if I need Mobile Doula in another language?
NO problem
If you need Mobile Doula in a different language then simply ask! If we do not already have the translation, we can provide you a spreadsheet of all the fields in Mobile Doula (there are only a few hundred) and you can provide the translation. Then within a few days we can update our app to support your language.


Is Mobile Doula HIPAA compliant?
YES
Security is one of the primary reasons we build Mobile Doula. The primary reason for building Mobile Doula was to offer electronic charting software to Doulas that did not NEED an internet connection at all times to work. However, the second reason is because we knew that web-based EHRs are not very secure with regards to being able to secure social security numbers and personal health information. In fact, no other web-based services such as online banking, credit cards or loan services even show more than 4 digits of your account number and they certainly will not show your SSN on a webpage. However low-end or free EHR/EMRs are doing this and it is not safe. Thousands of Bank, Credit Card and PayPal logins are hacked into every day even though these websites use the absolute best in government security standards available.

HIPAA is a bare bones security standard
If any software you use is only HIPAA compliant, it's nothing to feel really safe about. It primarily just requires that all private information be encrypted when transferred or stored and that logins are secured by username and password.

Mobile Doula exceeds HIPAA standards
Mobile Doula encrypts all of your sensitive data. When data is transferred between your iPad, iPhone or Mac and the Mobile Doula Cloud, 128-bit encryption SSL technology is used to encrypt your data. The primary way in which we exceed HIPAA requirements is simply by the technology we use. We do not offer any sort of web-based access that are vulnerable to hackers and our software does not run on insecure devices such as laptops or desktop computers which are full of malware, spyware and viruses that capture your keystrokes, data files, cookies and take screenshots and send them to hackers. Read more about why web-based EHRs are not safe and why PCs are a liability to your practice.


What is your record retention policy for storing records long term?
Mobile Doula is unique from all other EHRs in that we provide unlimited view access to all your records even after you discontinue your account. We will not delete records from our system for 25 years from the date of the record creation. So, if you discontinue service you can still log in any time using the Mobile Doula app to view any of your records. We also provide a very robust export feature so you can safely export an entire client chart with all documents, images and data to a password protected PDF.

With Mobile Doula you own your records
It is our official policy that you own the data. That means you can request at anytime for us to delete all the data for your account from our system and we will. Also, as per our policy and HIPAA requirements we will not look at any of your data for any reason except to provide you with technical support when you request it.


Lactation Consultant EMR/EHR blog