No phones at clinical

[cmonkey]

Bummer, I loaded epocrates, skyscape, etc., on my phone, and because it has a camera (hard to find a phone w/o one), I can't use it in clinicals. I wonder if I taped over it or something... I sure don't want to get a PP or anything after coughing up all the money for books and tuition. Anyone hear the same thing? There must be some kind of workaround. Maybe I'll need the ipod touch after all.

[caroladybelle, BSN, RN]

Yeah the difference is a good nurse knows where to look to find information. You simply cannot know everything no matter how much you prep yourself the night before and at some point you know you might just have to look something up. I would be MORE worried if someone claims they know everything and never looks anything up.

And there is nothing to stop you from using the FACILITY'S accepted references and technology - that is what it is there for. And that is what great nurses do.

That is why you have a P&P book and/ or the FACILITY's website on computer with the FACILITY'S procedures available on the floors of every good hospital, as noted in my post. These cover the FACILITY's REQUIRED way to do procedures, not some anonymous generalized instructions that may not meet the hospital's individual policies.

Again, in good hospitals that meet the requirements of JCAHO as well as other licensed agencies, you should be following the facility's policy and procedure. The school is trying to adapt you to that, as that is what will be required of you when you leave school.

And again, no matter how you put, at some point, you will have to walk into a room and perform a duty, without your "crutches". No patient is going to want to see you referencing your Ipod, when they are in SVT, their sats are in the hole or when you are about put a foley in. When you are sterile, or when your pt is crashing, you are not going to be able to reach for your Itouch. Thus, you need to learn (and learning requires practice) to function without it.

[cmonkey]

Have you considered actually doing the old fashioned way, without the epocrates, skyscape, camera or cell phone? You know like many licensed nurses do, and have done for ages.

You will find many workplaces will also bar anything but their own technology, anyway.

Wow, no, it had never occured to me that it was possible to find information before computers.

I'm 41. I know how to look things up. I also know that my time is limited as is my knowledge. Anything I can have access to that helps me with learning is of interest to me.

I don't think many nurses bewailed the loss of glass syringes and hand sharpening the needles because it was just too easy to use the disposables. Access to things that promote knowldge or safety are at least worth considering.

[CrunchyMama, ASN, RN]

I applaud the poster who said do things the old fashioned way! No disrespect to the OP but gosh this shows how sadly dependant people are on useless technology. Remember just 10 years ago, we all (I still am) survived with NO cellphone, iphones, itouch, blackberries, strawberries whatever....it's ridiculous! I've known of people freaking out because they left their phone at home! OMG...it's like they lost their leg in the parking lot! @@

[cmonkey]

Remember that people probably felt this way about calculators. I'm sure some still do. But I'm going to assume that even "good" nurses are allowed and even encouraged to use them when doing dosage calcs. I sure hope so.

Look, I appreciate doing things old school. I can. I bake. We raise our own meat, eggs, and honey. We use cloth diapers. But IT'S OKAY for us to use commercial food and baked goods and disposable diapers and no one looks at them as "crutches".

I see EMRs in every facility in our area. Crutch? I see docs roaming around with their faces stuck to their PDAs. It's okay for them but not us? Double standard.

[Nurse Connie]

We are required by my nursing program to have a PDA or smartphone and to bring them with us in clinicals. We need to look up meds every time we give them and we need to look up our patients diagnoses, treatments etc. It's not a crutch, it's a learning tool and much more convenient then carrying around 4 different books with me to clinicals.

[Moogie]

When I was a clinical instructor, the students were required to bring their cell phones to clinical---as was I---per school policy. It was the only way students could get in touch with me because the group was split between two floors.

[caroladybelle, BSN, RN]

Remember that people probably felt this way about calculators. I'm sure some still do. But I'm going to assume that even "good" nurses are allowed and even encouraged to use them when doing dosage calcs. I sure hope so.

Look, I appreciate doing things old school. I can. I bake. We raise our own meat, eggs, and honey. We use cloth diapers. But IT'S OKAY for us to use commercial food and baked goods and disposable diapers and no one looks at them as "crutches".

I see EMRs in every facility in our area. Crutch? I see docs roaming around with their faces stuck to their PDAs. It's okay for them but not us? Double standard.

Yes, but they have GRADUATED. They are not still in school, and learning the basics. And the MDs are also generally not employed by the hospital and as far as know, there are few P&P books for medicine lying around. If they violate HIPAA, through carelessness, they get to pay the fine and take the fall. Therein lies a few differences.

In addition, there is no bar to using the FACILITY's references and technology....which is what they should be doing.

What you CHOOSE to do when you graduate - if an error comes up or HIPAA gets violated, it's your damage. The school is trying to do what they consider appropriate and what fits in with the policies of where they do clinicals and what they shoulld be doing. If you note, the OP is thinking about trying to get around the rule. A student gets busted going against the clinical site policies, chances the school getting its clinical cancelled - which happened in one place that I was at, because of cell phone use.

Most basic math classes and most pharmacology/pharm math courses do not permit students to use calculators on the tests, because they need to learn how to do the math. Then once that is established, they are permitted to use assistive devices, not before. In spelling classes, one does not get to use spellcheck on the test.

Please also read what I posted. In my facility, outside technology is not used on the floor by Attendings or residents. There is plenty of facility technology available. Thus, NO double standard and fewer issues/chances for HIPAA problems.

Every year, we have students come complaining in here about the difficulty of pharmacology math. Pharmacology math is very basic math that should have been mastered in grade school. The reason that they cannot do it, because someone has let them depend on a calculate. At some point, we need to actually require them to do it because there will be times when a calculator will not be easily available (hurricane Katrina, anyone?).

The OP's course does not permit outside technology to be used in clinical. This still leaves plenty "crutches" to be used as references, calculators, etc. There are indeed plenty of ways to function without his/her PDA, and still be accurate and have access to appropriate data.

[That Guy, BSN, RN, EMT-B]

Uh the OP doesnt allow CAMERAS, not all electronics.

[ReinventingMyselfAgain, MSN, RN]

Uh the OP doesnt allow CAMERAS, not all electronics.

Exactly. It's gone way off topic. It's about students who feel the constant need to be connected, via phone/text/facebook status updates. And the camera/security issue. It's a legitimate concern in the hospitals.

And to answer another posters question about what happens if your kid gets sick? What do you think happened 15 years ago when a nursing students' kid got sick during clinical?

[lsk40]

wow I don't know where you guys go to school but we have to know the meds we are giving and if we don't we have to look it up in a book not our phones if I was a pt and saw a student on the phone I would think it was for personal reasons and would think they were rude

[cmonkey]

OUR COURSE does not preclude "assistive devices." The clinical site does. And I know for a fact that docs use them because I used to work there. Look, we disagree. That's fine. But I'm not backing down from saying that having access to technology (whether it's the facility's or my own) is automatically a negative. What flies (or doesn't) at your facility has no bearing on mine.

My pharm class allows calculators. Perhaps we should shut the program down because it's turning out incompetent nurses.

I am NOT trying to get around the policy. I wondered idly if putting tape on the camera, which is visible, and could easily be checked, would be satisfactory. I'm not sneaking in a hidden camera or going undercover, for pete's sake. Please read MY post.

[cmonkey]

Exactly. It's gone way off topic. It's about students who feel the constant need to be connected, via phone/text/facebook status updates. And the camera/security issue. It's a legitimate concern in the hospitals.

Just to be clear: I was not discussing trying to stay connected with anyone. I can and do turn my phone OFF during class. I even leave the house without it. I wanted to vent about the fact that for people who don't have PDAs, banning phones limits access to valuable sources of information at the bedside. Facilities differ. Programs differ. My facility doesn't allow phones with cameras. Nothing about phones. JUST CAMERAS. I completely understand that. I understand the privacy implications. I simply bemoaned the loss of what I have found to be a useful tool.

I said "tool."