THURSDAY CONSUMER HEALTH TIPS

I would like to know details about all of the actions AirWatch can do to my phone. For example, can it reset my phone to factory defaults without my permission, or "scrub" my phone, completely deleting all applications and data, not just Mayo applications and data?

Thorough transparency as what will and won't be encompassed should be provided … clearly. You should post a definitive inclusive list of what is done exactly and provide specific guarantee of what is not (do you cache passwords? ip address visited? maintain logs? What is the log retention policy? To whom will you release log information? etc etc) These are considered standards for true transparency and Mayo should strive to meet them.

Will this also concern if we use the Patient App as patient (not employee) or the Reimbursement App?? Or just email, calendar and other employee related apps??

Well said Carl. Until the MDM team supplies a clear, encompassing list of the features that Mayo will be utilizing within the AirWatch Agent, it would be a mistake for any employee to install this software on their personal devices…and even with said list, a strong argument can be made that the company should be providing devices to staff who's jobs require offsite access to email/outlook. I personally use this access as a convenience and won't be installing the AirWatch Agent on my personal device.

From the Mayo MDM website: The device will allow up to 10 attempts to enter a correct passcode to unlock your device. On the tenth consecutive incorrect attempt, the device will be wiped taking your device back to factory default.

Will Mayo ever change their policy regarding reimbursement of cell phone expenses to cover all employees? For many the majority of cell phone use is to be effective in their jobs and the monthly costs are becoming significant.

When you read carefully the reasons people give the software/app such low ratings is because of all of the inherent problems associated with eh app not just because of loss of privacy. Although the loss of privacy is still a huge concern. If you read carefully on the Ariwatch developer's website all of the things the software can do, I am also not comfortable having this on my personal device. Even though the FAQ here at Mayo says they will not do certain things, the software gives the IT department the ability to do all of those things. I will not be adding this onto my personal device unless it is dedicated for work only and even then it will concern me because of what it can see. I think a link to the ratings of all three app stores should be included somewhere to make it easy for everyone to personally evaluate whether or not to have this get installed on their personal devices. Security is one thing, potential invasion of our privacy is another. Mayo needs to provide mobile devices to the employees that need them and pay for the services on them to separate personal from work. This constant connection to work is why so many employees feel burned out and have no work-life balance.

I love the fact that I can check my email as well as my calendar on my phone. However, I do not want to install another app on my phone! Is there another way to enable employees to view their own calendar without installing this app? If there is no such mechanism, would it be possible to come up with such a solution? (I know Outlook supports publishing calendars to WebDav server). Just saying there should be simple-and-secure solutions to enable employees to be productive. Thanks.

the "read more" links in this story actually answer a lot of questions being asked

I believe you can access your email and calendar externally by going to https://mcmail.mayo.edu. But good luck. The site isn't mobile friendly so it's a nightmare to traverse around. I used to use that link to access email externally before getting it set up on my personal device and it was always annoying. Perhaps is Mayo created a mobile friendly version…

If it's important to Mayo Clinic, Mayo Clinic should pay the bill and supply employees with a device. Don't install the app, remove work email and calendar from your personal device, and end the free-loading.

I've encountered times when there hasn't been enough open connections to get through on the mcmail.mayo.edu link. I'm hoping Mayo will take steps to accommodate a likely significant increase of users wanting to use that system as the result of these changes.

Mayo has an obligation to protect non-Mayo devices accessing the network. Having said that – you should only use the app if you assume that Mayo will have access to everything on your phone. There's a fine line between having access and saying: Yeah, but we won't look.

I just went through the process to download the new application. Before I installed, I received a notice: "Installing this profile will allow the administrator at https://mdm.mayo.edu" to remotely manage your iPhone. The administrator may collect personal data, add/remove accounts and restrictions, and list, install and manage apps on your iPhone." No thank you. I will no longer be checking my work email on my phone.

As a provider I need to have access to my mayo emails, calendars, etc. on my cell phone at all times, and I certainly understand the need to maintain security. However, this app and "protection" sounds like a terrible idea. As shared in numerous other posts Mayo should accommodate, provide and pay for devices like they do for pagers if they expect continued great care of patients and efficiency even though I don't want to carry around yet another device! I always check my email when I am not on campus or by a computer (ie. cafeteria) and need to accept meetings, answer questions and review content dedicated to work. Adding a sub par app that can knock out my phone/ipad whenever or adding yet another step to "unlock" just to check a message seems frankly stupid and pointless. Please tell me what I'm missing, but this just seems like a bad idea.