PDA for meds

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I am a nursing student and I am interested in buying a PDA specifically to use for meds ie Tungston palm pilot. Does anyone have one? Which one do you have (please be specific), what do you like/dislike about it, what software do you use with it, would you recommend buying one why/why not?

Any input would be greatly appreciated

Thanks Susan

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Specializes in Tele, ICU, CCU, teaching.

I do have a PDA that I use specifically for the drug book. I have a Dell pocket PC and use the Davis' Drug Guide for Nurses software. I find it really helpful. I always have it in my pocket and don't have to run around to find a drug book when I need to look something up quickly. Being a new grad nurse I don't yet know all the drugs so this makes it simple. I researched PDAs alot before I bought this one so let me know if you have futher questions. Hope this helps.

Karen

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I have an iPAQ 1910. My boyfriend bought it for me for christmas last year and absolutely love it!

I have Lippincotts Drug Guide for Nurses...It has everything I've ever needed.

I love having my pda in my scrub pants at clinical...makes everything much easier.

My suggestion if you're going to use it on the floor is get a metal case...when my hands are moving a mile a minute I don't have to worry about accidental drops! :)

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I also have a Palm, but they dont make it anymore since they merged. But i love it! I have a nursing drug book, a intervenous drug book, a BMI calculator, drip rate calculator and a couple of other things. Since I am also a new nurse and dont know a lot of meds it comes in very handy. I also have my datebook on it so its much easier for schedualing and things of that nature.

Good luck!

Pearl

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Psych.

I have a Tungten E (only $149.) I purchase a memory card and downloaded Davis' Drug Guide. I love it so much! I used www.skyscape.com and cannot wait to order something else. I think I head over there now and order myself an early Christmas present!

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The program I am enrolled in made the PDA part of our tuition. iPAQ Pocket PC. We were also required to download the folowing from Skyscape.com and I highly recommend them. NOTE: Unless you're in a big hurry, request the CDs instead of downloading - never know when you can't get to the internet and you need to reload.

Tabers Dictionary, Davis's Drug Guide, Nursing Procedures, Practical Guide to Health Assess., Disease and Disorders, Nurse's Manual of Lab and Diagnosis Tests-4/e - all very good so far and about $200 total.

Also highly recommend downloading for free Archimedes Math Calculator.

Just downloaded Nursing Diagnosis Handbook by Ackley and Ladwig for $42. This is already helping big time with my Nursing Care Maps. NANDA approved.

All of these books fit on the removable card to keep the pocketPC freed up.

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i bought the cheapest clie at that time, $70. its colored, has enough memory and is just the right size to fit in my pocket. i like the nursing drug handbook 2005, nursing procedures, rndiseases and tabers. i love epocrates too.

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Specializes in LPN.

I am thinking of buying one of those for school as well

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Specializes in Emergency Dept, M/S.

I'm a student, and use my Tungsten T3 ALLLLLL the time. In fact, all of my clinical group and instructor borrow it also on clinical days.

I have Davis Drug Guide, Taber's and a generic Nursing Dx manual. I tried to find the manual our school uses (by Ackly and Ladwig), but couldn't find it anywhere.

It is so handy on clinical days. So helpful for looking up those new meds quickly while in the med room, and if you're like me, the pt. you're assigned the day before will be dc'd by the time clinical starts, so you have to start alllllll over with new pt and dx's. I can't tell you how useful my PDA is on those days especially.

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I also have the Dell Pocket PC and use the Davis Drug Guide for Nurses. Same basic setup as the book we all used in nursing school.

Such a time saver! Good for you that you want to get one! verrrry smart!

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I am a nursing student and I am interested in buying a PDA specifically to use for meds ie Tungston palm pilot. Does anyone have one? Which one do you have (please be specific), what do you like/dislike about it, what software do you use with it, would you recommend buying one why/why not?

Any input would be greatly appreciated

Thanks Susan

I have Tungsten E from palm. I have a 128MB expansion card too. On the expansion card I have a drug "book", a book about diagnostic tests, and a book of nursing interventions and plans. I purchased all of the books from skyscape. I chose the option to do a trial download before purchasing each. I liked the features.

I liked the drug book (I'll list it below) because it is geared toward nurses and has subsections for each drug on patient teaching, nursing considerations, and effects on lab results...as well as all the other things you'd expect in a drug book.

I like my test/diagnostic program becasue it explains what is required before, during and after every procedure, as well as why it might be ordered and what results may indicate. I have referred to it many times in answering questions for patients about what to expect during a procedure.

The nursing interventions is the hardest to use, but I don't like the nursing intervention that much. I have used it though to help decide what subjective and objective things might apply to my particular patient...and what I might expect to see.

The programs are listed as follows:

NDH05 by LWW (drug book)

RnDxTests by FAD (test/diagnostics book)

RnDx_Int by FAD (nursing interventions)

the three programs link between each other, though I probably haven't used that feature to my full advantage.

I love my extra tungsten brain though!

good luck

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Any other software suggestions?

I'm awaiting the arrival of my PDA and am curious...

Anyone know about epocrates?(.com??)

SJ

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