BMJ partners with Figure 1 app that allows engaging with medical experts, students

The digital age has ushered applications that can help people on the move update their medical knowledge, connect and safeguard lives. Figure 1 app has drawn the interest of healthcare professionals.

UK-based BMJ, one of the world's oldest general medical journals, marks a milestone by partnering with the organisation behind the Figure 1 app. The partnership enables researchers to collaborate directly with medical professionals across the world to discuss their research and findings with their peers.

The innovation gives people in far-off places instantaneous access to expert global healthcare. Clinicians, on the other hand, get to share or discuss professional opinion with colleagues and senior members of the healthcare profession.

Figure 1 app comes in handy for professionals such as nurses, doctors, or researchers who end up in remote areas across the world. Non-medical health professionals may also access the app, but the app is mostly aimed at people working in the industry to solve problems.

The BMJ researchers may use the revolutionary app to discuss their works with key target audiences right after publication. The app is used by over a million healthcare practitioners and medical students who can tap into the network and immediately glean insights about rare medical conditions and even send secure, encrypted direct message to their colleagues.

It is undoubtedly an "exciting new platform,” said Fiona Godlee, editor-in-chief of the company’s flagship journal, the BMJ. She also expressed that BMJ is passionate about finding new ways to help clinicians further hone their knowledge and skills, practice evidence-based medicine and improve outcomes for their patients.

Dr Yusuke Tsugawa of Harvard University is the first BMJ researcher to take part in a live Q&A on Figure 1. He said that Figure 1 is an "incredible way for researchers to bring their work directly to the global medical community."

Tsugawa presented research showing that US patients have lower mortality rates when they are treated by foreign-trained doctors. He was awed by the intelligent conversation sparked by the forum. It was something that just didn’t exist before, Tsugawa noted.

Besides serving as an educational tool, Figure 1 can bridge distances and help people deal with a gamut of emotions, including feelings of isolation, loneliness or depression. The app is available on iPhone in English, Portuguese and Spanish. It can also be downloaded using an Android phone.

Figure 1 has offices in Toronto and New York. It was listed as one of the top startups to watch in 2016 by Betakit.