Educational Technology in the Medical Industry

The enormous U.S. medical industry is a rich laboratory and think tank for technology integration. Higher education in the medical industry is comprised of a large number of professional training programs as well as formidable continuing medical education. Continuing education for medical professionals is inconsistent and flawed. Technology integration in medical fields has mirrored the false starts and frustrations seen generally in higher education. There are promising areas of investigation such as high-fidelity patient simulators and incorporation of wireless handheld devices for point-of-care reference information and best practices. Widespread adoption of electronic medical records may allow medical education researchers to link instructional practices to eventual patient outcomes, with implications for higher education.