Like the rest of academe, medical schools are developing extensive computer networks that can be used while students are on the campus. The problem is, much of medical education takes place away from the networks, and even away from the library. We used to send everybody to one or two hospitals, but hospitals are getting smaller, beds are closing. In some courses, students are going out to 10 different sites. With all that running around, many medical-school officials have grown increasingly concerned about maintaining a consistent level of quality in education.
Students dump the data into campus computers upon their return.
But we heard about these machines and decided to do it electronically, which has made the data collection a lot simpler. This year the university also installed several medical data bases on the computers, letting students more easily look up information. Other departments in Iowa's medical school are beginning to use the devices as well, largely because of the expectation that they will become standard equipment for physicians. While Iowa has dipped a toe in the water, Harvard has dived in. This year, every medical student at the university was offered the loan of a palmtop computer.