iDoc at the Eisteddfod

Last month, I was fortunate enough to attend the National Eisteddfod of Wales, to present our iDoc project to event goers.  The Eisteddfod, noted to be one of the world’s greatest cultural festivals, brings together people and communities from all over to enjoy music, literature, dance and theatre and much more.

I attended to survey members of the public on their perception and opinions of doctors and health professionals using smartphones in clinical settings at point-of-care.

I gathered views from over 80 individuals of all ages and was also able share with them the details of our iDoc project.

The iDoc project, is a Wales Deanery funded initiative that supports newly qualified doctors in Wales by providing them with a smartphone app of key medical textbooks, for use in clinical settings. Importantly, the app is not internet dependent and so is not affected by dark spots in hospitals.

Our evidence shows how use of the iDoc app has had a significant positive impact to those using it, especially in areas of patient safety and emergency situations. However, one of the concerns from doctors with regard to using the iDoc has been using it in front of patients.

At the Eisteddfod, response to the app from the general public was very positive and people felt that this is something they would be comfortable with Doctors using in front of them.  

We’ll be further analysing our survey results over the coming months.

Many thanks to Cardiff University engagement team, my colleague Sion Jones and of course to the National Eisteddfod for a really fantastic day – I will definitely be going next year.