Why do Doctors still use a pager?

[MustangSVT]

anyone??

 

[MaxDSP]

they like to keep it gangsta

 

[PingSpike]

Because doctors are old people. And old people hate technology.

 

[imported_Tick]

 

[Accipiter22]

you can't have a cellphone on around medical equipment..duuuh

 

[DaShen]

they do use a cell phone, but it is a pager too. It is just quicker to find out you are on call without talking to someone. Plus the system can be automated, so only a few people need to manage it rather than paying individuals to talk to the doctors.

I.E. - More Practical.

 

[rh71]

because they dont' want to give out their own cell numbers and they dont' want to have to carry 2 phones ? Pagers are usually smaller. I have both and all this applies to me (except I'm no doctor).

 

[DaShen]

Originally posted by: Accipiter22
you can't have a cellphone on around medical equipment..duuuh

This is true too. But they get paged at home too.

 

[mercanucaribe]

Originally posted by: DaShen

Originally posted by: Accipiter22
you can't have a cellphone on around medical equipment..duuuh

This is true too. But they get paged at home too.

Pagers use cell phone technology.

 

[79Blazer]

Originally posted by: mercanucaribe

Originally posted by: DaShen

Originally posted by: Accipiter22
you can't have a cellphone on around medical equipment..duuuh

This is true too. But they get paged at home too.

Pagers use cell phone technology.

Not even close.
http://www.cwcom.com/metrolert/faqpage.htm
http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/cell-phone1.htm

 

[mugs]

Originally posted by: rh71
because they dont' want to give out their own cell numbers and they dont' want to have to carry 2 phones ? Pagers are usually smaller. I have both and all this applies to me (except I'm no doctor).

So when you call in to see why you're paged, and your cell phone number comes up on caller ID... ... ...

 

[rh71]

Originally posted by: mugs

Originally posted by: rh71
because they dont' want to give out their own cell numbers and they dont' want to have to carry 2 phones ? Pagers are usually smaller. I have both and all this applies to me (except I'm no doctor).

So when you call in to see why you're paged, and your cell phone number comes up on caller ID... ... ...

i doubt they're going to mark it down and use it next time. It's just a matter of having your personal cell number in the documentation.

Besides, I call from my business line.

 

[Inspector Jihad]

pagers are also used in hospital wide calls...emergencies etc...my dad is a doctor and if there is an emergency, he gets some sort of code on his pager that everyone gets...as soon as the closest doctor gets to the patient, another code is sent out to cancel teh request...and also its easier and one seceratary can keep all calls sorted out. it would be highly impractical for teh sec. to call a doctor and tell him to call back so and so and this time if the doctor is busy.

 

[InverseOfNeo]

I think its because they have codes they use to page people. Dont you remember in multiple episodes of ER, a DR will get paged and they know exactly where to go and everything without using a phone?

 

[Spineshank]

I dont know but here at the company i work for in IT we all have pagers when i think it would make more sense to have a phone. Yet the managers use Nextel.

 

[MrChad]

The healthcare industry is one of the most technophobic in the world. Why do you think doctors still have those giant file cabinets to hold hundreds (thousands) of paper medical records?

 

[franksta]

So they can call back at their convenience.

 

[dethman]

we use pagers. it's much more practical for us to call back at our convenience because i often get multiple pages at once, or i'm often interviewing patients, or in the middle of a procedure or operation. in any case, at our institution, we use alphanumeric pagers with keypads for two-way text paging.

 

[N8Magic]

It's because of coverage and availability.

Pagers work in many places that phones do not, such as basements, inside large buildings, out in the middle of the countryside, etc. As doctors MUST be available when on call, the whole "I had no cell signal" cannot fly and they need to use the most reliable technology around: pagers.

 

[AStar617]

Actually, I think OP's question was more "If all current cellphones double as alphanumeric pagers (via SMS), why not just use the paging function on issued cellphones?"...

I believe this has more to do with reception due to the differences in the technology. I have a nationwide pager due to my job, and I have never, EVER gotten a "no signal" status on it, whereas even my Verizon (read: most solid mobile network) phone has moments of blackout. When lives can be in the balance, that's important.

EDIT: Damn, N8Magic beat me to the punch.

 

[skyking]

Pagers work in many more locations. There is always a chance with cellphones you will be out of coverage.
Pagers do not interfere with medical equipment.
In most circumstances, a doctor has ready access to landlines, which have zero static or coverage problems.
It is nowhere near the interruption for a beeper to go off.

 

[Pliablemoose]

Why do Doctors still use a pager?

They're cheap.
Serivce is cheap.
They're durable.
They're small.
Battery life is measured in months instead of hours.
The service is relatively bulletproof.
They (hospitals) have specific pagers for specific functions, IE, if pager X goes off, there's a hot trauma coming in to the ER.

<---Looks at stupid damn pager my hospital just issued me, then looks at PDA/Phone combo I bought so I wouldn't have to carry two electronic gadgets.

Damn it, back to 2

 

[IamElectro]

Originally posted by: N8Magic
It's because of coverage and availability.

Pagers work in many places that phones do not, such as basements, inside large buildings, out in the middle of the countryside, etc. As doctors MUST be available when on call, the whole "I had no cell signal" cannot fly and they need to use the most reliable technology around: pagers.

We have a winner. It is all about reliability.

 

[Inspector Jihad]

Originally posted by: MrChad
The healthcare industry is one of the most technophobic in the world. Why do you think doctors still have those giant file cabinets to hold hundreds (thousands) of paper medical records?

you're an idiot...have you been in a hospital? how can doctors be technophobic when everything they do is tech related.

 

[Mark R]

The pagers carried by doctors are usually specially designed to provide local coverage. A mast is installed at the hospital, and it provides guaranteed coverage of the whole site. E.g. in the basement, in the lead lined rooms of the X-ray department, etc. This is particuarly important, for on-site doctors who may need to be respond very urgently.

Additionally, the on-site systems are usually specially customised for the site requirements. E.g. For extremely urgent calls (e.g. cardiac arrest, a voice message can be broadcast to selected pagers. So there is no need to read the display, or get to a phone. The message can be acted on immediately).

Cellphone coverage can certainly not be relied on in very large buildings (especially, in basement or underground areas).

Some doctors who need to be contactable while off site, may carry a pager that uses a commercial network as well as their on-site pager. However, in many areas, off-site cellphone coverage is sufficiently good that many doctors simply use a cell phone if they are on-call but not on-site. (Usually what happens is they'll leave a series of contact numbers with the hospital switchboard operator, who will forward calls).

Commercial pagers also have the advantage that they don't require as strong or clear a signal as a phone - so their range and coverage is better.