Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Apple iPad, Amazon Kindle, or the Nook for medical students

Scrub, MD
Tech
March 1, 2011
Share
Tweet
Share

The e-reader battles are clearly heating up, with the Apple iPad, the aggressive marketing of the Kindle and the Nook trying to sneak its way into the conversation. What does this mean for medical students? Should iPads be mandatory in medical school?

Joseph Kim of Mobile Health Computing argues that it certainly should be, but I think the argument is not well formed. Of course we want medical students to have the latest whizbang technological gadgetry, but the real question is: what role will this technology play? For example, we could provide all medical students with electron microscopes during their study of histology, but clearly this would be ridiculous: the knowledge yield would not justify the cost at all.

So, let’s consider what we want our ereaders to do. Clearly, Kim wants a Swiss Army Knife type tool – a tool that lets students become fully engrossed with their study materials, interacting in a way that was never possible before. One can easily imagine an iPad with a digital cadaver, first years carefully “finger dissecting” away layers to reveal deeper structures, or sweeping their fingers to rotate and pan the images to see other angles. Because its digital, such anatomy could much more easily linked to its practical application in medicine via linked diagnostic images, intraoperative findings, and even path results.

But, is this what we really want? Or rather, is it the only thing we want? Clearly, even with all this neato technology, there is an ocean of information to absorb and comprehend in a limited amount of time. Sorry, first years, but you will still have to spend hours in the library pouring over textbooks. This is where the argument gets a bit murkier, primarily because of technological issues. The iPad is backlight; the Kindle is not. For medical students spending hours staring at text, the Kindle actually provides a much better user experience. And, imagine being able to carry the entire library in this one lightweight device! Yes, the iPad can do it too, but do you really want to read an iPad for that many hours?

The question of whether devices should be ‘required’ of medical students is not a new one. Ever since portable devices became popular, medical schools have struggled with whether to mandate that their students have a laptop, or PDA, or now, e-reader. Until technology advances far enough that we can have all the functions we desire in one device with a user interface we like, medical schools may be better off simply supporting the purchasing choices of their students without mandating any particular device. Let students choose how they like to learn, and what tools they want to use to accomplish that, and they will be the better for it.

“Scrub, MD” is a recent medical graduate and currently a resident physician who blogs at Scrub Notes.

 

Submit a guest post and be heard on social media’s leading physician voice.

Prev

The Strange Powers of the Placebo Effect [VIDEO]

March 1, 2011 Kevin 0
…
Next

The physical exam of the head and neck is both simple and challenging

March 1, 2011 Kevin 2
…

Tagged as: Health IT, Medical school

Post navigation

< Previous Post
The Strange Powers of the Placebo Effect [VIDEO]
Next Post >
The physical exam of the head and neck is both simple and challenging

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Scrub, MD

  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    Can pit crews really heal medicine?

    Scrub, MD
  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    During the holidays, our goal should be to provide a holiday for our patients

    Scrub, MD
  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    Why doctors should pursue another degree

    Scrub, MD

More in Tech

  • A mind to guide the machine: Why physicians must help shape artificial intelligence in medicine

    Shanice Spence-Miller, MD
  • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

    Vineet Vishwanath
  • The promise and perils of AI in health care: Why we need better testing standards

    Max Rollwage, PhD
  • 3 tips for using AI medical scribes to save time charting

    Erica Dorn, FNP
  • Would The Pitts’ Dr. Robby Robinavitch welcome a new colleague? Yes. Especially if their initials were AI.

    Gabe Jones, MBA
  • Generative AI 2025: a 20-minute cheat sheet for busy clinicians

    Harvey Castro, MD, MBA
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • How New Mexico became a malpractice lawsuit hotspot

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Why doctors are reclaiming control from burnout culture

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Decoding your medical bill: What those charges really mean

      Cheryl Spang | Finance
    • The emotional first responders of aesthetic medicine

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • Why testosterone matters more than you think in women’s health

      Andrea Caamano, MD | Conditions
    • A mind to guide the machine: Why physicians must help shape artificial intelligence in medicine

      Shanice Spence-Miller, MD | Tech
    • How subjective likability practices undermine Canada’s health workforce recruitment and retention

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 9 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • How New Mexico became a malpractice lawsuit hotspot

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Why doctors are reclaiming control from burnout culture

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Decoding your medical bill: What those charges really mean

      Cheryl Spang | Finance
    • The emotional first responders of aesthetic medicine

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • Why testosterone matters more than you think in women’s health

      Andrea Caamano, MD | Conditions
    • A mind to guide the machine: Why physicians must help shape artificial intelligence in medicine

      Shanice Spence-Miller, MD | Tech
    • How subjective likability practices undermine Canada’s health workforce recruitment and retention

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Apple iPad, Amazon Kindle, or the Nook for medical students
9 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...