Handheld computers or PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants) are now in widespread use by commercial organizations, healthcare professionals, and students. Recognizing that PDAs are valuable tools for organizing personal activities and for carrying clinically useful information between classrooms and clinics, medical schools are implementing or considering student PDA ownership/use requirements. This workshop will present essential current (2002) information about different models of Palm OS and Windows CEhandheld computers, useful software for pre-clinical and clinical education, and methods for connecting to existing network systems.

We will also look at advanced audio, video, and wireless networking capabilities of next-generation Pocket PCs. We will discuss appropriate content, methods, and resources needed for portable PDA application development, with a special focus on leveraging existing Web resources and supporting multiple platforms (device migration). Participants will be shown how to develop local Web sites for distributing interactive content, databases, organizational news, and other applications for healthcare education and experience-based clinical learning. We will share early experiences with PDA curricular support at UCLA School of Medicine.

BENEFIT TO PARTICIPANTS ATTENDING SESSION: 

Medical schools are implementing or considering student PDA ownership/use requirements. This workshop will present essential information for choosing different models of handheld computers, software for pre-clinical and clinical education, and ways to connect to existing networks. We will also look at advanced audio, video, and wireless networking capabilities of next-generation Pocket PCs. We will discuss appropriate content, methods, and resources needed for portable PDA application development, with a special focus on leveraging existing Web resources and supporting multiple platforms (device migration). We will show how to develop local Web sites for distributing interactive content, databases, organizational news, and other applications for healthcare education and experience-based clinical learning. We will share with participants our experiences on support needs and what works (or doesn't) in practice.

Robert B. Trelease, Ph.D.
Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
UCLA Center for Health Sciences
Los Angeles, CA 90095
Phone: 310 206 9971
Fax: 310 794 7465
Email: trelease@ucla.edu
Website: compubio.medsch.ucla.edu