Flash Drive Stores Health Records

Mobile Health Data
January 10, 2005

MedicAlert, a Turlock, Calif.-based vendor of emergency medical technology and services, has developed a USB device that stores personal medical records. The Personal HealthKey device can be plugged into a USB port on a desktop or notebook PC to give emergency providers access to a patient's critical medical information.

Patients can store their entire medical record on the device, as well as images; or, just include critical data, such as allergies or conditions they've authorized medical personnel to view in an emergency situation. Patients can view and update data on the HealthKey via an interface between the device and a MedicAlert Web portal. They also can upload such information to the vendor's database.

The device runs on the U3 platform, which enables USB devices to be used for other applications besides traditional data storage, including running software such as the CapMed Personal Health Record system from Bio-Imaging Technologies Inc., Newtown, Pa., the system the HealthKey device uses. U3 LLC, Redwood City, Calif., developed the peripheral platform. The company was founded last year by M-Systems Flash Disk Pioneers Ltd. and San Disk Corp., vendors of USB flash drive technology.