Spectrum of tablet computer use by medical students and residents at an academic medical center

BACKGROUND The value of tablet computer use in medical education is an area of considerable interest, with some medical schools integrating tablet computers into their preclinical curriculum. This study was conducted to investigate how medical students and residents use tablet computers at SIU‐SOM. METHODS An anonymous online questionnaire was shared with the medical students and residents at SIU‐SOM in July and August of 2012. RESULTS There were 76 medical student and 66 resident/fellow responses to this survey. Slightly over 50% of respondents used a tablet computer, and 40% used a tablet computer one or more times daily. Residents/fellows were more likely to use tablet computers several times daily than medical students (32% vs 20%, p = 0.035). Residents were more likely than students to use a tablet computer to access an electronic medical record (41% vs 21%, p = 0.010), review radiology images (27% vs 12%, p = 0.019), and enter patient care orders (26% vs 3%, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that medical students and residents use tablet computers frequently, and for a variety of educational and clinical tasks. Residents are more likely to use tablet computers for direct patient care tasks.