Not too long ago iMedicalApps was the first to break the news of Blackberry showing off a medical app in their first live event for their Playbook tablet.  It appears major players in the enterprise software business are banking on the Playbook being used in the hospital setting.

QNX, a large software company, recently showed off a medical reference design that allows the Blackberry Playbook to connect to medical peripheral devices via Bluetooth. The medical reference design is built on the QNX Neutrino RTOS, a platform that has a history of being FDA approved in regards to medical usage.

QNX states their software allows the Blackberry Playbook to connect to certain Continua Certified medical devices, such as blood pressure monitors, weight scales, and pulse ox devices.

The following picture on QNX’s blog of the software design in action also reveals telemedicine usage:

Highlights from the company’s press release:

The reference design supports the Bluetooth® Health Device Profile, a short-range wireless technology well-suited for medical applications in which data is relayed from the local device, such as a pulse oximeter, to a mobile phone or PC for in-hospital communications. The reference design also supports remote device connectivity with a BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablet.

With more hospital systems and private practices switching to EMR (electronic medical records) due to federal stimulus funds from ARRA (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) — it’s clear there will be a market for mobile electronics in regards to hospital and private practice workflow.

Apple has proven in the past to not be vested in the enterprise ecosystem as much as Blackberry (although this is changing), and with Blackberry’s solid reputation for security and enterprise usage, the Playbook is primed to be a tablet to be reckoned with in the hospital setting.

From all the great hardware specs and the OS demos we’ve seen so far, the Blackberry Playbook definitely looks enticing — but time will tell if Blackberry is able to follow through on the potential, something they have not done in regards to their smartphone operating systems.

The company showed of the design at Medical Design & Manufacturing West on February 8th.

Sources: Press Release via Crackberry

Picture Reference: QNX blog