title: A study of personal digital assistants to enhance undergraduate clinical nursing education.
abstract: This study reports on personal digital assistants (PDAs) as a means to prepare nurse professionals who value and seek current information. An interdisciplinary team of nursing and library faculty, information technology and bookstore staff, students, and educational consultants developed this project. A pre-post and comparative group design of second-degree students in the accelerated and traditional baccalaureate nursing degree (BSN) options was used to examine students' information-seeking behaviors, and the effectiveness and cost of innovation strategies associated with incorporation of PDAs into students' clinical practice. Results of this study support PDAs as an effective student learning resource, especially for reference materials. The student group with PDAs had increasing numbers of questions associated with clinical situations and a greater recognition of the need to use current resources. Students made substantial use of their PDAs and health team members, while decreasing reliance on textbooks and clinical faculty. Students' use of and satisfaction with this technology is linked to access speed and readability. Providing faculty with PDAs is recommended to enhance their comfort with and incorporation of PDAs into clinical teaching.
authors.affiliation: The University of Portland, School of Nursing, Portland, Oregon 97203-5798, USA. millerj@up.edu
authors.forename: Judy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.forename: Julia R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Shaw-Kokot
authors.forename: Martha S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Arnold
authors.forename: Tevin
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Boggin
authors.forename: Karen E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Crowell
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Allegri
authors.forename: Janet H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Blue
authors.forename: Stephanie B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Berrier
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001292:Attitude to Computers; D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards; D003197:Computer Literacy; D003200:Computer User Training; D003194:Computer-Assisted Instruction / Q000191:economics / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D034201:Computers, Handheld / Q000191:economics / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D004508:Education, Nursing, Baccalaureate / Q000458:organization & administration*; D018961:Educational Technology; D005106:Exploratory Behavior; D005181:Faculty, Nursing; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D015402:Nursing Education Research; D015397:Program Evaluation; D013338:Students, Nursing / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires