PURPOSE: Despite widespread use of mobile technology in medical education,
medical students' use of mobile technology for clinical decision support and
learning is not well understood. Three key questions were explored in this
extensive mixed methods study: 1) how medical students used mobile technology in
the care of patients, 2) the mobile applications (apps) used and 3) how expertise
and time spent changed overtime.
METHODS: This year-long (July 2012-June 2013) mixed methods study explored the
use of the iPad, using four data collection instruments: 1) beginning and
end-of-year questionnaires, 2) iPad usage logs, 3) weekly rounding observations,
and 4) weekly medical student interviews. Descriptive statistics were generated
for the questionnaires and apps reported in the usage logs. The iPad usage logs,
observation logs, and weekly interviews were analyzed via inductive thematic
analysis.