ER: “Get Me Windows Embedded, STAT!”

Interest in smarter, more integrated, portable devices presents medical equipment developers with huge opportunities.

REDMOND, Wash. — April 27, 2011 — When looking at the devices found in a modern-day doctor’s office or health clinic, it’s obvious to see that over the past several years there have been remarkable transformations in healthcare technology. Manufacturers, developers and software vendors have gone to great lengths to power medical innovations that go beyond basic data output. With smarter devices that can lower costs, streamline processes and integrate facilities in disparate locations, medical technology has the chance to provide an overall enhanced experience creating a win-win for patients and primary care physicians.

Faced with the industry’s increased demand for smarter, more integrated solutions, Microsoft Windows Embedded is helping medical device original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to bring specialized devices to market that help hospitals and clinics better care for patients. Through multiple platforms such as Windows Embedded Handheld, Windows Embedded Compact, Windows Embedded Standard, Windows Embedded Server and Windows Embedded Enterprise, Microsoft is powering a vast array of medical devices that have become commonplace for doctors, nurses and patients to use daily.

“Microsoft in Health: OEM’s Guide to Medical Device Operating Systems” discusses how each of these platforms addresses scenarios in a given medical arena and how OEMs can decide which is the right operating system to power their device. Through each Windows Embedded platform, manufacturers can quickly bring to market products such as medical PDAs, patient monitoring devices, pharmaceutical bar code readers and diagnostic ultrasound equipment.

Windows Embedded is no stranger to success and support for the medical device community. “So Many Health Clinics, So Little Time” is a compelling story detailing how Wyse thin clients running on Windows Embedded Standard 2009 effectively centralized IT resources for Hillcrest Baptist Medical Clinics, which spanned 12 facilities across a 40-mile radius. You can also check out the case study titled “Regional Medical Group Virtualizes Electronic Health Records with Windows Embedded” for more information on this story.

In “The Difference Seconds Can Make,” you can read all about how Sonosite’s M-Turbo™ system (powered by Windows Embedded CE 6.0) rapidly boots up an ultrasound medical device for doctors in under 15 seconds! With componentized software and small system footprint, this device has 16 times the processing power of SonoSite’s previous-generation device and still weighs less than 7 pounds.

Interested in a more technical download of Windows Embedded healthcare solutions? How about checking out some of the upcoming webinars the team is hosting, which will run one hour each and target education for technical decision-makers (TDMs), OEM developers and device manufacturers. You can register for any of the sessions, which run from April through the end of June, here.



Windows Embedded Medical Device Portfolio

To learn more about the hand that Microsoft and Windows Embedded have had in the medical community, visit the Microsoft Case Studies page where you can read more about this case study and other examples of innovations and investments brought to market. You can also drop by the Windows Embedded page featuring industry solutions for healthcare, to see an overview of medical devices, determine if a Windows Embedded-powered device is right for you, and peruse support that spans any phase of development for medical equipment.

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