Do you use your pda/smartphone at work?

I'm reading more and more info about nurses using apps on their devices to help them do a better job and as a Blackberry lover I can see how having info at your fingertips can be helpful BUT how realistic is it?

Do nurses really use their smartphones at work?

Are they allowed on the floor? Encouraged?

What about during clinicals?

I think I would feel weird pulling out my Blackberry to look for info on a drug *even though there are MANY apps with really comprehensive guides*

Thanks!

[WSU_Ally_RN, BSN, RN]

I have and Ipod touch and feel lost without it at work! I love having so many apps at my fingertips! I can look up drugs, diseases, or treatments when my patients and family's ask, without having to leave the room.

[BluegrassRN]

I just tell them that I have a reference on my phone, and I'll look it up. People know that phones are more than phones.

[Chin up]

Absolutely and the NP'ers use them too. In fact, the new iPhone 4 is everywhere in my facility right now.

[ValDonovan]

I had an IPod touch and now the IPhone. I use mine all the time, I am currently in clinicals and it makes researching drug way easier than having to carry around a bulky drug guide.

Best of luck!!!

[Aly529]

Thanks everyone! I'm glad to hear it's not frowned upon because in this day and age a smartphone IS the easiest and fastest way to get info. Hopefully my clinicals will allow my Blackberry to accompany me.

[flyingchange]

I used my BlackBerry to look up a drug and my clinical instructor lost it on me.... user beware.

[Aly529]

I used my BlackBerry to look up a drug and my clinical instructor lost it on me.... user beware.

Really? That's too bad. I guess some see this as unprofessional and unreliable. IE. If it's not in a book, it's not real? I find it innovative and productive.

[ValDonovan]

I guess it depends on your facility policies. They don't want nurses walking up and down the halls looking like they are texting. But I certainly think they are a HUGE assett in our field.

Val

[BobcatRN]

We aren't allowed to have our phones near us. We could be reprimanded, even fired. Yet, docs are on theirs at the nurse's station (non business related) ALL THE TIME... It's a total crock because I do use mine for more than the actual phone.

[RescueNinja]

Absolutely! At my LTC facility no "electronic devices" are allowed, but I explained to my DON that a) I refuse to work without my cell in case of emergencies and b) I use it for nursing reference like drug calculations and whatnot all the time and he was ok with it.

[Emergency RN]

I'm reading more and more info about nurses using apps on their devices to help them do a better job and as a Blackberry lover I can see how having info at your fingertips can be helpful BUT how realistic is it?

Do nurses really use their smartphones at work?

Are they allowed on the floor? Encouraged?

What about during clinicals?

I think I would feel weird pulling out my Blackberry to look for info on a drug *even though there are MANY apps with really comprehensive guides*

Thanks!

I was like... HUH? Why feel weird?

Frankly, in this day and age, IMHO it is considered almost de rigueur to have a pocket device with answers at your fingertips at the bedside. Sure, the device can have multiple purposes (eg. a stethoscope can be used for safe cracking too); but at the bedside, it's usage is understood to be for professional reasons. That is, you're pulling out the Blackberry to obtain clinical knowledge, and presumably not to gossip text or violate HIPAA by taking photos of the patient. So it should not be a problem at all.