ABSTRACT
PURPOSE OF REVIEW: There is an increasing importance of incorporating mobile computing into the academic medical environment. A growing majority of physicians, residents and medical students currently use mobile devices for education, access to clinical information and to facilitate bedside care. Therefore, it is important to assess the current opportunities and challenges in the use of mobile computing devices in the academic medical environment. RECENT FINDINGS: Current research has found that a majority of physicians, residents and medical students either own or use mobile devices. In addition, studies have shown that these devices are effective as educational tools, resource guides and aids in patient care. Although there are opportunities for medical education, issues of deployment must still be addressed, such as privacy, connectivity, standardization and professionalism. SUMMARY: Understanding the opportunities and challenges of using mobile computing devices in the academic medical environment can help determine the feasibility and benefits of their use for individuals and institutions.
Subject(s)
Anesthesiology/economics , Computing Methodologies , Education, Medical/trends , Academic Medical Centers/trends , Anesthesiology/trends , Clinical Competence , Hospitals, University , Humans , PrivacyABSTRACT
Today's educators are faced with substantial challenges in the use of information technology for anaesthesia training and continuing medical education. Millennial learners have uniquely different learning styles than previous generations of students. These preferences distinctly incorporate the use of digital information technologies and social technologies to support learning. To be effective teachers, modern educators must be familiar with these new information technologies and understand how to use them for medical education. Examples of new information technologies include learning management systems, lecture capture, social media (YouTube, Flickr), social networking (Facebook), Web 2.0, multimedia (video learning triggers and point-of-view video) and mobile computing applications. The information technology challenges for educators in the twenty-first century include: (a) understanding how technology shapes the learning preferences of today's anaesthesia residents, (b) distinguishing between the function and properties of new learning technologies and (c) properly using these learning technologies to enhance the anaesthesia curriculum.
