By Allison DeLeo
A recent article, “Mobile Technology May Influence Medical School Training,” in U.S. News and World Report discusses how mobile technology has changed the medical field and medical training. John Hopkins University’s School of Public Health is pioneering the charge to implement mobile technology in education. To date, there have been more than 50 projects implemented leveraging both students and faculty. We’re also seeing a growth in mobile technology and education from Harvard University, which is offering students the chance to conduct field studies and discuss studies based on cases from Rwanda involving the use of mHealth – mobile healthcare.
Here are some recent examples where medical schools are leveraging mobile technology in their programs:
Mobile Devices in Preclinical Education: Some medical schools are giving students the option to receive their educational materials through their mobile devices. This is both a means to be more environmentally friendly and optimize education.
Mobile Patient Tracking: Harvard University currently is integrating mobile devices into its third-year students. This mobile app (for most smartphones and tablets) allows third-year clinicals to have complete access to their patients outside of the hospital. The app securely tracks patient and doctor meetings.
Mobility in medical training may be a new phenomenon; however, most medical professionals agree that healthcare and mobility will be a widely accepted in the near future. Not only will we see it in everyday medical practices, we’ll see its growth in medical school education as well.
How do you see the intersection of mobile technology and healthcare? How will it grow in the future?
A little bit about me: Allison loves NCAA football, her alma mater, the University of Oregon, and getting complete connectivity and access to them 24×7.
