During clerkship, what kind of ''peripheral brain system'' do you use?

[Karma]

So, I'm curious about this. I'm starting to see more and more attendings with ipads, but an ipod touch still seems to be more popular with med students.

[springman13]

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[Renin]

i would usually bring along a physician for good measure.

 

Preferably an internist.

[Mourning Cloak]

A piece of paper and a pen. Sanford guide.

 

Why don't I use an ipad?

 

Wait till infection control gets a hold of your $1000 fomite and then you'll see why.

[KennethToronto]

So, I'm curious about this. I'm starting to see more and more attendings with ipads, but an ipod touch still seems to be more popular with med students.

 

All mostly useless. Good for keeping on top of your email or checking on the great weather outside that you're missing.

[Lactic Folly]

I still have my PDA (pocket PC or Palm - does anyone still use these?). Fits nicely in one's scrub pocket.

[thebouque]

Wait till infection control gets a hold of your $1000 fomite and then you'll see why.

 

Never heard of infection control getting hold of an ipad and lots of people are using them at my institution...

[justletmein]

Never heard of infection control getting hold of an ipad and lots of people are using them at my institution...

 

An ipad is simply not as practical as an ipod touch or iphone.

 

You get exactly the same applications on both systems, yet only one can fit in your pocket.

 

... I once saw an anesthesiologist using his ipad, and in that situation it seemed to work well if not better than an iphone, but in terms of every day practicality, who wants to carry around an ipad ?? (unless you are an attention seeker).

[Mourning Cloak]

Never heard of infection control getting hold of an ipad and lots of people are using them at my institution...

 

You know how you have to clean your stethoscope and wash your hands in between patients?

 

Same thing with an ipad (unless you're not planning on touching your patient ha ha). It's highly inconvenient, particularly since anything that you could use to clean it would pretty much ruin it over time. ID considers these things as fomites (like pens, stethoscopes, etc.) and surveils regularly.

 

I've heard discussions re: forbidding white coats and banning ties, too.

[doctor2]

An ipad is simply not as practical as an ipod touch or iphone.

 

You get exactly the same applications on both systems, yet only one can fit in your pocket.

 

... I once saw an anesthesiologist using his ipad, and in that situation it seemed to work well if not better than an iphone, but in terms of every day practicality, who wants to carry around an ipad ?? (unless you are an attention seeker).

 

 

just get a smartphone. anesthetists carry around netbooks to OR...

[estairella]

You know how you have to clean your stethoscope and wash your hands in between patients?

 

Same thing with an ipad (unless you're not planning on touching your patient ha ha). It's highly inconvenient, particularly since anything that you could use to clean it would pretty much ruin it over time. ID considers these things as fomites (like pens, stethoscopes, etc.) and surveils regularly.

 

I've heard discussions re: forbidding white coats and banning ties, too.

 

I don't know which medical school you go to, but that's never been an issue at any hospital I've been at.

 

I don't clean my pens between patients. But then again, I don't press my pens to my patients' chests like I do with my stethoscope.

 

Same with neckties. The reason they're considered fomites is because they can easily come in contact with the unsterile field of the patient.

 

If you carried your necktie around on your belt, would infection control complain? No, except about your poor fashion sense.

 

Glove before exams. Unglove and wash your hands before picking up your personal effects (notepad, pen, iPad, whatever). Done and done.

[Julie]

Also, I've used Virox wipes from time to time to clean my ipod touch, and it seems to have handled it pretty well. Better than my stethoscope, actually!

[Smurfette]

Most people seem to use an iphone (although from a purely clerkship academic point of view an ipod would be the same if you have wireless at your hospital). I wouldn't say that it's ever truly necessary though. There's usually computers around to look up things on uptodate, etc and it's much more convenient to use than an iphone. It's really just so that you can check/answer your email when on the wards =)

 

The only exception to this is if your hospital allows you to access electronic patient records/enter orders from your smartphone, but I think that's really more a resident issue than a clerk issue.

[thebouque]

access electronic patient records/.

 

Accessing patient records is definitely a clerkship issue