Article: Handheld Help for Emergency Responders

A portable system puts government databases at user fingertips.

A system that began as a handheld reference device has burgeoned into a full-service emergency response aid that soon will be able to deduce the nature of hazardous substances on site. Known as the Wireless Information System for Emergency Responders, or WISER, the system is capable of being installed in a personal digital assistant, a Windows Mobile device or a smart phone, and serves an individual responder without any reach-back or networking requirement.

WISER originally was developed in 2004 by the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), which is part of the National Institutes of Health. Its first iteration gave users a ...

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