In an age of cost-cutting in medicine, time is money. We have a wonderful paid and volunteer faculty around here and throughout the state, but we have to make sure that the student brings value to the practice and that the doctor knows it. One way is to provide a computer and an Internet connection to MUSC with each student. Chessman hopes that the ability to connect to MUSC information resources will catch on, that doctors will see the value of the computer to their practice and begin to use its power to access the latest and most reliable information. The move toward a heavier reliance on technology is not without its stumbling blocks, however.
Chessman cites phone connection problems encountered.
Just one simple problem that remains unsolved can render a computer useless. And then there s the selection problem, Chessman said. He added that essential to every medical student s education is the acquired ability to discern which information is valid and which is not. Part of the curriculum is getting the students to search web links relating to common topics in family medicine. I think more and more doctors will be seeing patients who come to them saying, I read this on the Internet.