What one-and-a-half pound structure are anatomy students at the Alpert Medical School handling with care at this very minute? Hint: It is not a human organ we're talking about.
The Med School's recent adoption of Apple iPads as required technology for incoming students is part of a growing national trend. Stanford, Yale and Georgetown are just a few of the other schools which are reconfiguring their medical curricula around the iPad and encouraging students to take advantage of its functionality in clinical settings.
There is no shortage of advocates for the use of technology in medical education. After all, in a field so heavily dependent on the visualization of anatomical structures and physiological processes that are difficult to see, having a digital textbook that allows for clear images and their manipulation is undoubtedly helpful. It is easier and much more convenient to reach for a consolidated reference when attempting to digest such enormous amounts of material, and having multiple educational tools available at a single gesture aids in making connections across learning modules.
And hospitals are increasingly relying on the use of technology in clinics, with electronic medical records becoming a standard of care. Doctors themselves are using iPads to double-check diagnoses, send prescriptions and display images during surgery. Also, the Yale Daily News reported that the iPad, with its remote locking and erasure feature, offers more security for highly sensitive patient information than a laptop. It is not unreasonable for our digitally savvy generation to be on the cutting edge while preparing for professional environments.
Yet we would emphasize a measure of caution in implementing an iPad-centered curriculum. The most obvious, perhaps, is the financial implication for medical students already overwhelmed by tuition loans. True, the weight of their backpacks may be less, but the burden of cost involved for students buying iPads is nothing to take lightly. In starting its iPad requirement, Stanford's medical school had students rent the devices from the university instead of purchasing them. This was a smart move, especially given that the Chronicle of Higher Education reported that medical students had ambivalent reactions to a sudden jump to digital learning materials.
There is also a fine line between incorporating technology in the classroom or clinic and becoming dependent on it. Though the iPad is a powerful tool, most of us can attest to its capability as a powerful distraction. We would hate to see the next batch of physicians so engrossed in researching symptoms in real-time that they neglect the patients to whom those symptoms belong.
We applaud the Med School's commitment to providing means for students to learn in novel ways, and its conscientiousness in soliciting student feedback throughout the process. But trying to keep up with the tech sphere's continuous stream of updates and innovations may likely prove difficult. Thus, having a flexible and perhaps more gradual system in place for iPad use — such as offering a rental option or compatibility with multiple tablet operating systems — is in the best interest of students and administrators alike.
Editorials are written by The Herald's editorial page board. Send comments to editorials@browndailyherald.com.
