SMARTGLASSES IN HEALTHCARE: FROM A 2013 GOOGLE GLASS SURGERY TO TODAY’S CLINICAL REALITY
A single live-streamed procedure in June 2013 showed what mattered most: hands-free video was easy. Governance, privacy, and workflow fit were the hard parts.
THE MOMENT THAT MADE IT REAL
On 20 June 2013, surgeon Rafael José Grossmann used Google Glass during a routine PEG procedure (Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy) and streamed a first-person view via a Google Hangout to a remote screen. Grossmann chose a common procedure for a reason. He wanted his attention on the patient, not on managing a new device. He also treated confidentiality as a primary constraint: informed consent, no identifying patient information, and a clear effort to keep the operating environment calm. Audio was kept low. The set-up was designed to be unobtrusive.
He later described the experience as straightforward and “second nature”. The significance was not the video quality, which he admitted was limited by improvised techniques. The significance was the proof: a clinician could share a real-time, point-of-view perspective from inside a procedure without breaking sterility or stepping away from care.
The whole thing was fairly quick and went very well. We used “home-made” techniques, so the pictures and video are not optimal, but I think the point stands: Google Glass Streaming During Live Surgery…By a Glass Explorer Surgeon…IS POSSIBLE. [Source: ZGJR Blog]
WHAT SMART GLASSES ACTUALLY CHANGED
Smart glasses are not valuable in healthcare because they look futuristic. They are valuable because they reduce friction in three places that repeatedly slow care down:
- Distance to expertise
- Distance to information
- Distance between what a clinician sees and what others need to see
That is why the early Grossmann experiment still resonates. It put the core benefit on the table: hands-free, clinician-perspective video that can be shared instantly.
From there, the impact spread into five practical domains:
REMOTE SUPPORT WITHOUT AN EXTRA BODY IN THE ROOM
The most durable use case has been real-time remote collaboration. A clinician wears smart glasses and a colleague can see exactly what they see. In a hospital, that can mean faster specialist input during procedures or assessments. In smaller hospitals, it can mean mentorship and supervision without waiting for someone to travel. In community settings, it can help standardise decisions when expertise is scarce.
This is where “unobtrusive” matters. If the device distracts, adds cognitive load, or demands constant interaction, it fails. When it behaves like a quiet camera and communication tool, it can shorten decision cycles and reduce escalation delays.
TRAINING THAT FINALLY MATCHES THE OPERATOR’S VIEW
Medical teaching often suffers from a simple problem: learners cannot see what the operator is actually looking at. A head-worn viewpoint fixes that. Instead of crowding around a bed or leaning into a sterile field, trainees can watch a clear first-person feed. That makes demonstrations more consistent, supports remote teaching across sites, and allows replay for structured debrief.
The Grossmann case was an early signal of this shift. Even with a basic set-up, it demonstrated a teaching angle that fixed cameras rarely capture: the clinician’s line of sight.
LESS SCREEN TIME, MORE PATIENT TIME
Documentation has become one of healthcare’s biggest drains on attention. Smart glasses have been used in two main ways to tackle it:
- Remote scribing, where the clinician focuses on the encounter while a scribe documents in parallel.
- Heads-up access, where key information can be retrieved without turning away from the patient.
The intended outcome is simple: more face-to-face care, fewer interruptions, and less “after hours” charting. Whether a given programme delivers that depends on implementation, not marketing. The workflows, privacy controls, and integration with clinical systems determine whether the promised time savings appear.
INFECTION CONTROL AND STAFF SAFETY
During the COVID-19 era, many organisations looked for ways to reduce unnecessary entry into rooms and conserve protective equipment. Smart glasses and mixed reality headsets offered a practical option: remote participation in ward reviews, guidance for donning and doffing, and hands-free calls while staying with the patient.
The broader lesson goes beyond pandemic response. Reducing room traffic is often beneficial in high-risk environments such as isolation rooms, critical care, and operating theatres. Smart glasses can help when they allow the right people to contribute without physically being present.
“We needed an innovative solution. I’ve used HoloLens before in surgery and we quickly realised it had a unique role to play because we could take advantage of its hands-free telemedicine capabilities. Most importantly, it could be used while wearing PPE. It solved a major problem for us during a crisis, by allowing us to keep treating very ill patients while limiting our exposure to a deadly virus. Not only that, it reduced our PPE consumption and significantly improved the efficiency of our ward rounds.” — Dr James Kinross, Consultant Surgeon at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust.
AUGMENTED REALITY GUIDANCE IN PROCEDURES
There is a step-change between “smart glasses as a camera” and “smart glasses as a regulated clinical system”. In some surgical fields, head-worn displays are now tied to navigation platforms that support accuracy and standardisation, particularly where spatial guidance matters.
This category is about presenting calibrated guidance in the clinician’s field of view and integrating with tracking systems. It carries higher requirements for validation, regulation, training, and institutional support. When it works, the potential impact is large: improved consistency, potentially fewer errors, and better scalability of complex techniques.
WHAT IT TAKES TO SCALE
Privacy and consent A camera in a clinical space creates risk by default. Consent processes must be clear. Rules about what can be streamed, recorded, stored, and shared must be explicit. Access controls, encryption, and governance cannot be optional.
Reliability Battery life, connectivity, and audio capture must be dependable. Healthcare teams will not tolerate fragile systems in high-stakes environments. There must always be a safe fallback.
Ergonomics and comfort Weight, heat, fit with protective equipment, and long-wear fatigue matter. If a device is uncomfortable, it becomes a short-lived novelty.
Workflow fit The technology must reduce steps, not add them. If clinicians have to fight the interface, they will abandon it.
Evidence and outcomes Many deployments report enthusiasm but lack clear metrics. Without measurable improvements, leadership support fades and programmes do not scale.
THE TRUE IMPACT: EVOLVING THE CLINICAL LANDSCAPE
Dr Grossmann’s 2013 procedure was more than a technical milestone; it was a practical proof of concept. It established that smart glasses provide a vital, hands-free layer that brings remote expertise and immediate context directly to the point of care.
Since then, smart glasses have shaped the development of telemedicine, surgical training, and the digitisation of clinical notes. As the technology matures, the focus has moved towards ensuring a seamless fit within the clinical environment. The objective is to ensure these tools improve the efficiency of care while maintaining professional focus and patient confidentiality.
While adoption requires careful attention to data security and ergonomics, this ongoing refinement is making smart glasses a practical part of modern, connected healthcare.
