The expression, “a picture is worth a thousand words,” is certainly true in the medical world. Images are a great medium for medical professionals to share information and tell stories. Movable Science, Inc. has created a mobile application called figure 1, a crowdsourced medical image library for healthcare professionals. 
The application functions much like the popular photo sharing application, Instagram. Medical professionals share photos along with a brief description of the case to which the image corresponds. Users can scroll through the most recent photos or search for images relating to a particular condition. For example, a quick search for the word “fracture” brings up several x-ray images of broken bones. Tapping a photo reveals the photographer’s description as well as comments from other users. Users can favorite photos so they can reference them later. Patient privacy was the first thing that came to mind when I heard about Figure 1, and apparently it crossed the developers’ minds as well. The application has several built-in features that protect patient privacy such as an automatic face-blocking feature that detects faces and blocks them. User can also manually block anything else that might identify a patient, such as a tattoo or scar. The application has a second layer of protection as well. Users can flag any photo that has identifying information. The photo will be removed until a medical officer can determine whether a privacy breach has occurred. When a breach does occur, the photo is destroyed. Users can also use the application to obtain written consent from patients before posting a photo. With that said, some physicians are not satisfied with the extent of the privacy features. Bryan Vartabedian, MD, wrote about Figure 1 on his 33 charts blog and brought to light several privacy concerns, mainly that there is no verification process for physicians and little clinical context for the photos that are shared. The idea of sharing medical photos has a history in medicine, and it only makes sense it would evolve into the mobile world. Figure 1 has taken the important first step. It will be interesting to see how the application evolves and what imitators will undoubtedly come along.
The application functions much like the popular photo sharing application, Instagram. Medical professionals share photos along with a brief description of the case to which the image corresponds. Users can scroll through the most recent photos or search for images relating to a particular condition. For example, a quick search for the word “fracture” brings up several x-ray images of broken bones. Tapping a photo reveals the photographer’s description as well as comments from other users. Users can favorite photos so they can reference them later. Patient privacy was the first thing that came to mind when I heard about Figure 1, and apparently it crossed the developers’ minds as well. The application has several built-in features that protect patient privacy such as an automatic face-blocking feature that detects faces and blocks them. User can also manually block anything else that might identify a patient, such as a tattoo or scar. The application has a second layer of protection as well. Users can flag any photo that has identifying information. The photo will be removed until a medical officer can determine whether a privacy breach has occurred. When a breach does occur, the photo is destroyed. Users can also use the application to obtain written consent from patients before posting a photo. With that said, some physicians are not satisfied with the extent of the privacy features. Bryan Vartabedian, MD, wrote about Figure 1 on his 33 charts blog and brought to light several privacy concerns, mainly that there is no verification process for physicians and little clinical context for the photos that are shared. The idea of sharing medical photos has a history in medicine, and it only makes sense it would evolve into the mobile world. Figure 1 has taken the important first step. It will be interesting to see how the application evolves and what imitators will undoubtedly come along.
