PDA Applications

More and more medical professionals are turning to personal digital assistants (PDAs) to help them manage their schedules, take notes on patients, and look up reference information. A wide range of software programs are available to help the physician and pharmacist provide excellent care using a PDA. These include medical calculators and dictionaries, drug guides and formularies, and access points to internet-based information like websites and databases.

One great advantage of a PDA is that it fits neatly into a whitecoat pocket, making it easy to carry with you through your day. Another is that the information contained in the PDA is searchable, can be updated quickly, and is portable. Whereas three years ago a pharmacist might have referred to loose-leaf notebooks of drug information, now she can simply pull out her PDA, select the drug of choice, and read an up-to-date monograph. She can then search PubMed for recent clinical trials and studies on the drug, download citations to her EndNote library, and beam the information she found to a fellow professional or even the patient.

Because the number of options available to medical professionals is so large, we have focused on a few specific software applications and have supplemented those listings with sites that try to list large numbers of relevant websites.

Online Resources

ePocrates
This popular free drug reference program provides regularly updated information on commonly prescribed medications including adult and pediatric dosing, drug interactions, adverse reactions, cost/packaging, regimens and tables, and formularies. Supplementary products are available for purchase.

MICROMEDEX UNC Access ONLY
MobileMicromedex is available as a free download to UNC faculty, staff, and students. MobileMicromedex includes information on drugs, alternative treatments, toxicology, and acute care. Other packages (including a formulary) are available for purchase. Access the download instructions and registration number from the link on the Micromedex homepage; additional instructions are available from the HSL.

Lexi-Comp Software
Various components of the Lexi-Comp drug information package are available for purchase and download to Palm and PocketPC operating systems. Individual databases, such as Lexi-Drugs and Lexi-Natural Products are approximately $75; the complete package is $225. Please note: these are NOT free for UNC faculty, staff, or students.

MD on Tap
This is an application for PDAs that downloads PubMed Medline citations directly from the database to your PDA using a wireless connection.

UNC-CH School of Medicine PDA Initiative
Information on hardware and software, recommendations, training opportunities, applications, and more. Designed to support the UNC-CH School of Medicine program requiring students to purchase PDAs.

Health Sciences Library: Focus On Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs)
This short guide lists UNC-CH resources for medical use of PDAs, including links to campus support programs and to software applications.