Cardiac/Tele Apps

Unfortunately we couldn't have our phones with us during clinicals so I had to rely on my note cards. I printed EKG rhythms and pasted them on the cards with descriptions written on them and had them in my scrub pocket..lol. It was the ancient way of doing things but since I couldn't have my phone, I had to rely on something.

Wow!!! We would be dead if caught with a cell phone at clinical. Such a huge controversy about all that. I would suggest watching YouTube videos. I was on a cardiac last semester. My instructor would print off strips or look on the screens at the nursing stations to identify rhythms.

This is actually the first semester we've been encouraged to use our phones. My clinical this time around is at a small regional facility; maybe they're less upright than big name places?

My school also encourages bringing the phones to clinical over a drug book. They actually gave us a list of apps we should have for clinical.

That's so helpful! :) I mean I know there's always going to be the people who are rude and use their phones for personal stuff on the floor, but this technology we have now can be so beneficial to learning! I wish more places were more open minded about it!

Do you mind sharing the list they gave you?

There are several applications iTunes and Google play. You can practice easily when you have a few minutes. Remember regular, rate and measurements. No one will expect you to interpret strips on your own. Practice practice is the key.

While the intention of using an app or note cards sounds like a good idea, dysrhythmias rarely look like the textbook examples. I started my rotation on the CVU with flash cards but it wasn't helping. Don't worry about memorizing how it exactly looks. Learn what is happening so you can work it backwards. Meaning you look at a rhythm on the unit, ask yourself is it normal sinus? Is the QRS normal? Is the P wave in relation to the QRS? Think about rhythms as a big flow chart, and every yes/no answers gets you closer to the name of the rhythm.