Porting a Clinical Mobile Device Application from iPhone to Android

using Online Collaboration:a Case Study using NeuroMind

Jonathan C. Lau, MEng, MD Candidate, Queen’s University

Pieter Kubben, MD, PhD, Maastricht University

Objective

• To present our experiences porting a clinical mobile device application, NeuroMind, from iPhone to Android– Successes we’ve obtained

– Challenges of online collaboration

Outline

• What is NeuroMind?

• Our Collaboration

• Why Android?

• Project Planning

• Project Development

• Challenges

• Future Work

Outline

• What is NeuroMind?

• Our Collaboration

• Why Android?

• Project Planning

• Project Development

• Challenges

• Future Work

NeuroMind

• A mobile device application developed originally for the iPhone by Dr. Kubben

• Specifically designed as clinical resource for:1. medical students

2. neurology / neurosurgery residents

3. neurologists / neurosurgeons

• Available on the AppStore as free download

• Details at: http://blog.digitalneurosurgeon.com

NeuroMind

NeuroMind

• Has been downloaded more than 30,000X since its release

• #1 ranked iPhone app for neurosurgery

Outline

• What is NeuroMind?

• Our Collaboration

• Why Android?

• Project Planning

• Project Development

• Challenges

• Future Work

Collaboration

• How does a medical student from Kingston, Ontario, Canada end up collaborating with a neurosurgery resident from Maastricht?

Collaboration

• Social Media (Twitter)

Collaboration

• After two readers emailed @DigNeurosurgeonabout NeuroMind on Android, he broadcasted the following message on Twitter:

• Link to his blog– Concluded that it was outside of his current

priorities to port NeuroMind to Android

– But should anyone be interested, to contact him

Collaboration

• In touch by email that day

• Agreed on initial plan:– To develop framework in Android SDK

– Add same content as on iPhone (HTML)

• Tentative deadline for working application:– Six months from our initial contact

– (Time of Medicine 2.0 Congress)

Outline

• What is NeuroMind?

• Our Collaboration

• Why Android?

• Project Planning

• Project Development

• Challenges

• Future Work

Why Android?

Why Android?

Why Android?

Outline

• What is NeuroMind?

• Our Collaboration

• Why Android?

• Project Planning

• Project Development

• Challenges

• Future Work

Project Planning

Project Planning

• Google Wave:

Google stopped developing 2010/08.

Project Planning

• 37signals Basecamp: www.basecamphq.com

30-day free trial then $49/month.

Project Planning

• Email– July:

• get Dictionary example working• experiment with changing content in example

– August-September: expand example with1. working database in background that is used for loading data2. have the user go to a detail screen that displays the data (title,

description, content) if the user clicks the item in the TableView

– October:• Populate app with actual content and continue testing

– November: prepare conference material and release– Nov-Dec: release and post about it

Project Planning

• Obtaining an Android phone– Not absolutely necessary: well-documented

software from Google for virtual device

– Bought used HTC Magic online

• Obtaining an “iProduct” to evaluate NeuroMind– Borrowed an iTouch from colleague

Outline

• What is NeuroMind?

• Our Collaboration

• Why Android?

• Project Planning

• Project Development

• Challenges

• Future Work

Project Development

• Software Development Environment– Original goal to try developing using Android SDK

– Eclipse Platform:• Free open-source software

• Designed for development of Java applications

• Android SDK available with virtual device for testing mobile device applications

Project Development

• Tutorials on Android (http://developer.android.com)

– Hello World to Dictionary

– ListView as UI candidate

Project Development

• Enter Appcelerator Titanium Mobile 1.4– Released July 26, 2010

• Open source platform for developing nativemobile and desktop applications using web technologies

• Support for multiple platforms:– iPhone and Android support since June 2009

– iPad support since April 2010

– Blackberry support in beta

Project Development

• Significant progress with Appcelerator 1.4 release (September/October 2010)

• Preliminary Android NeuroMind released:– October 23, 2010 (ahead of schedule!)

• Coincided with release of Surgical Neurology International mobile application– see conference presentation by Kubben et al.

Project Development

• Available on Android Market

• 500-1000 downloads so far

Outline

• What is NeuroMind?

• Our Collaboration

• Why Android?

• Project Planning

• Project Development

• Challenges

• Future Work

Challenges

• In Medicine 2.0 context:– Selected Group of Stakeholders:

• Neurosurgeons and neurologists

• Neurosurgery and neurology residents

• Medical students interested in clinical neuroscience

– Collaboration:• Limited to specialized # of stakeholders who also had

interest in mobile device application development

• Likely did not take advantage of expertise of greater community as well as we could have

Challenges

• Collaborator Idiosyncrasy– or “Compatibility” between collaborators

– Different Platforms:• Lack of virtual device on non-Apple products for

product development

– Different Software Development Environments:• Eclipse Java environment

• Appcelerator Titanium

– Time:• Clinical duties, other research priorities, time difference

Challenges

• Maintaining CollaborationWe know Medicine 2.0 is useful for initiation of

collaboration (intermediation/apomediation) but how do we maintain effective collaboration over time?

Challenges

• Collaboration in Software Development– Tracking Project Milestones

• Social Media: Twitter, Google Wave

• 37signals Basecamp

– Tracking Software Changes• Redmine:

– web-based project management + bug-tracking tool

• Trac

• Appcelerator?

Challenges

• Collaboration in Content

• Tracking Content Changes (neurodss.com)– Currently using Google Docs

– Alternatives:• Wiki

Outline

• What is NeuroMind?

• Our Collaboration

• Why Android?

• Project Planning

• Project Development

• Challenges

• Future Work

Future Work

• Design, Development, Maintenance, Testing– User Interface (iOS, Android, RIM, Windows 7)

• Appcelerator has many advantages:– Content / Layout nuances decided by others– Software development largely outsourced– Can focus on content building

• There are disadvantages too:– Dependence on support provided by company

and their roadmap for development– Professional version $199/developer/month

Future Work

• Collaboration in Content

• Mobilize other stakeholders?– ?Authority to edit

– ?Authority to edit from mobile device

– Ability to rate entries

– Ability to ask for new entries

– Peer-review

Aside: need to support multiple mobile platforms to ensure widest participation

Future Work

• Multiple Versions of NeuroMind?– Decision support version for clinicians

– Education version for medical students

• Integration with Neurosurgery 2.0 framework?

Future Work

Future Work

Conclusions

• While our software development deviated from our original design, a product was released ahead of schedule for Android

• Online collaboration can be effective but the tools used are context dependent and depend also on project scale and direction

• Having the opportunity to discuss in person at this meeting will greatly assist with facilitating our continued collaborations

Acknowledgements

• Dr. Pieter L. Kubben (@DigNeurosurgeon)– Maastricht University

• Queen’s University, Kingston, ON, Canada– Dr. Richard Resnick

• Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences for funding

– Undergraduate Medical Education Office

Thank you for your attention!

• Questions?