M.L. Johnson reports that Brown University recently joined a growing number of medical and nursing schools — including the University of Michigan, University of Texas and the UCLA School of Medicine — that require students to buy and use PDAs.
One goal is to teach students the value of up-to-date information in a field that is rapidly changing, (University of Rhode Island College of Nursing) assistant professor Laurie Lauzon Clabo said … If we had students buy a book, by the time the book hits the bookstore, it’s outdated … And with using PDAs, they can update their software weekly.
Kudos. PDAs sure beat pen and paper for some medical tasks. I wonder what data exist about the relative effectiveness and efficiency of using electronic memories and searches over manual, paper-pen processes. These data could serve usefully in a proposal for authorizing mobile PCs in other schools and universities.
