EBME Forums Forums Maintenance Technical Assistance Philips Intellivue XDS

To view the lab results, scans etc, you need the extra software, plus you have to make a decision 'hard wiring or wireless? for a complete communication package your choice.

Oh yes, Mike ... I'm all for anything that gets nurses to actually be with the patients. Feel their pulses, look into their eyes, communicate with them (now, there's an idea). You know, human stuff like that!

I am the Product Manager responsible for IntelliVue XDS, and I would like to answer a couple of questions that have popped up on this product in this forum:
1. The "meaning" of XDS - Mr Geoff Hannis' link to the IHE acronym hits close to home, because it is very closely related to the underlying concept on which we built the product. IntelliVue XDS does allow and promote X-departmental document sharing, but it goes even beyond that. As for the three-letter marketing identifier "XDS": it is just that - a marketing identifier and nothing more.
2. Does the "X" stand for "eXpensive"? - haha.. You will be pleasantly surprised. XDS application software can be downloaded free of charge from Philips website. There are no licencing fees for the software or restrictions on the number of copies that can be installed. You can even install it on existing hospital PCs (Win XP or Vista). Installation, configuration and application integration can be done by the BioMed or IT team. Installation is via an install whizard, and application integration is not much more complicated than creating a windows shortcut. However, If you want the local Philips Support to install/configure/integrate it for you, they would be happy to provide you with a quote.

Hello Chandana, and welcome to the forum.

Free? Somehow I doubt it. A free download ... and then a "quote" for support?

As has been "explored" recently in various posts on this forum, most of us agree that "there's no such thing as a free lunch"! That reminds me ... I'm off across the road now for an egg banjo!

Meanwhile, surely you can come up with a nice piece of techno-speak that fits XDS ... if not, please try harder! Ha, ha.

Thank you, Geoff.

You are right. Any commercial entity that needs to return a profit to shareholders can't afford to develop things for nothing. The business reasons for giving this software away for free are similar to most of such promotions in the market.
1. To increase market share
2. To provide differentiation vs the competition
3. Make competitors "bleed"

So even though the marketing intentions are not altruistic (they never are, in this dog-eat-dog world), our customers would still benefit from this.

The "Quote for support" is only required if the hospital does not have a BioMed or IT team that can do the installation. Infact, we encourage customers to install the application on their own. This again, differentiates us from the competition.

If you have any question on the installation processes, configuration and application integration, I would be happy to answer you on this forum.

Frankly, I doubt that I shall ever get to play with IntelliVue XDS myself. The kit I get involved with tends to be a bit simpler (older) than that.

What I want personally is for the Mighty Philips Empire to make regular donations in order that I can continue providing technical services and support to medical charities shipping used medical equipment to those in need overseas!

Hi Geoff,

That's a noble mission, and I wish you well.

You may be interested in checking this out: http://www.philips.com/about/sustainability/socialresponsibility/index.page

Geoff, do you think that they may be asking you to join their program.
ps what happened to the pictures you promised (cow sheds and the like)

I don't see any program there as such. It seems to be about Philips employees (and, er, marketing ... or what we could call "grooming" future customers)! They all look pretty much "bright eyed and bushy tailed" to me!

Yes ... I've started to get into the habit of carrying my camera about as part of my kit now (something I have been a bit er, slack about in the past, I'll admit). But I don't really do PR myself, preferring to leave that sort of thing for others who (hopefully) have a talent for it.

I haven't been down to the cow-shed for a while (I think that Clinical Depression is ravaging the little that's left of my tired old head ... either that, or Asperger's beginning to take its toll)*, but I'll try to remember to take a couple of shots at the "dairy" when we're loading up the next container for Kashmir.

But, anyway ... it's just a cow-shed. You know, bales of hay, old tractors, shelves of old medical equipment, a couple of lights strung up, rain coming through the tin roof, the lovely smell of cow [censored]. It's not so bad when the sun's shining. I imagine you get the "picture"!

* Actually it has more to do with lack of funding, and the fact that (as minimum requirements are not being met ... for instance, see my comments just made about manuals accompanying equipment) I'm not sure that what I've been doing down there is actually helping!

Just like Princess Margaret used to say "why does the world smell of fresh paint?"