Two Stethoscopes?

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Syranope2

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My parents gave me a Littman Cardio III for Christmas, but I just received the exact same model from my lab as a going away present. I'm trying to figure out if I should keep both of them or return/sell one. Any reason why I might need two stethoscopes instead of just one? Or should I get the cash?

Thanks 🙂
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How badly do you need the cash?

Besides, I always view returning gifts as an offense to the giving party (even if you do already have one)

Besides, Litt cardio 3 are nice stethoscopes, and you never know when you might need that 2nd one. Stethoscopes have a nasty tendency of "growing legs" and walking away 🙂
 
Sure, people lose things, but it's not like you can expect to lose your stethoscope, and certainly not to the point where you should keep one as backup. If it was me, I'd just sell it to an incoming student. You'll be able to get a competitive price for it since it's new.
 
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Syranope2 said:
My parents gave me a Littman Cardio III for Christmas, but I just received the exact same model from my lab as a going away present. I'm trying to figure out if I should keep both of them or return/sell one. Any reason why I might need two stethoscopes instead of just one? Or should I get the cash?

Thanks 🙂
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Keep it- I have 3!!!
 
I would keep it. You'll never know when you'll lose your stethoscope and need another one (its happened to a quarter of the students I know). Remember to put a tag on it with your name and contact information.
 
keep it. when you get to the clinical years, you can keep one in your car in case you ever forget yours at home, or if you stop to render assistance, you'll always have one.
 
Jaded Soul said:
Sure, people lose things, but it's not like you can expect to lose your stethoscope, and certainly not to the point where you should keep one as backup. If it was me, I'd just sell it to an incoming student. You'll be able to get a competitive price for it since it's new.
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Hey there,
You stethoscope is going to "walk" more times that you can count. Keep both of the scopes.
njbmd 🙂
 
Whisker Barrel Cortex said:
I would keep it. You'll never know when you'll lose your stethoscope and need another one (its happened to a quarter of the students I know). Remember to put a tag on it with your name and contact information.
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BTW, Littman has an engraving service for their scopes - you can get your name etched onto the chest piece for $25 or so. Looks kind of classy, but you have to send the scope off for a week or two, so you might need two.

http://www.3m.com/us/healthcare/professionals/littmann/jhtml/engraving.jhtml
 
efex101 said:
When do you actually need a stethoscope MS2?
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When you start seeing patients - actually, before then, when you learn how to use one.
 
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Thanks one more question...which is the best one? and I am pretty short at 4'11 so do i need a 22"? no clue as you can see...
 
efex, you can wait until the medical supply reps come to town and have their little stethoscope fair. The prices are at least as good as anything on the web and you can try them out and see what length and color you like, etc. Then you won't have to wait for one and can just get it the same day. You'll need it first year for sure but the equipment fair is early on. Don't bother buying one on the web unless you find some fantastic deal.
 
thanks for all the opinions, guys. i think i'll keep the second one just in case, cuz i don't really need the cash. and i'm definitely getting it engraved 🙂
 
Don't know which is the best..I assume the most expensive...and then there are those crazy electronic ones (that can be useful as a teaching aid...one of our internal medicine professors used one a lot to show us interesting findings when they were too difficult to hear without the electronic ears). I got the Cardiology III...kind of pricy (I think we paid $117 or about that), but it's treated me well and has the most versatility: diaphgram, the Littman diaphgram/bell mode, bell, pediatric diaphragm, small bell.
 
mpp said:
Don't know which is the best..I assume the most expensive...and then there are those crazy electronic ones (that can be useful as a teaching aid...one of our internal medicine professors used one a lot to show us interesting findings when they were too difficult to hear without the electronic ears). I got the Cardiology III...kind of pricy (I think we paid $117 or about that), but it's treated me well and has the most versatility: diaphgram, the Littman diaphgram/bell mode, bell, pediatric diaphragm, small bell.
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The Master or Cardio III are usually considered "best", but the best is the one that lets YOU hear the best with - and people are different.

I have a $9 "nurses" scope that sounds as good as my Master II, for a LOT less money. And, no body is likely to steal it.

What are the general feelings about tubing colors?
 
ericdamiansean said:
What type? 🙂
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I would like to point out I am not some maniac collector of stethoscopes!
I have a Classic SEII from flight nursing kit, a Master Cardiology that I tend to use clinically which was a gift from ex-work colleagues and a Cardiology III (an Ebay bargain) that I use in practical exams as some more "traditional" examiners like to see you use the bell during cardiac auscultation in mitral area 🙄 and the Master Cardiology has no bell.

At the end of the day go for whats best for you. Most med students here in UK use a Classic SEII and those usung anything more advanced are seen as "flash" but with my hearing I find I hear far more with the insulated double tubing of the Master 'scopes.
 
Kev (UK) said:
I would like to point out I am not some maniac collector of stethoscopes!
I have a Classic SEII from flight nursing kit, a Master Cardiology that I tend to use clinically which was a gift from ex-work colleagues and a Cardiology III (an Ebay bargain) that I use in practical exams as some more "traditional" examiners like to see you use the bell during cardiac auscultation in mitral area 🙄 and the Master Cardiology has no bell.

At the end of the day go for whats best for you. Most med students here in UK use a Classic SEII and those usung anything more advanced are seen as "flash" but with my hearing I find I hear far more with the insulated double tubing of the Master 'scopes.
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That almost goes without saying 🙂

I'm not really a collector either, but have probably a half-dozen different scopes, including a very classic design "Ford-bowles" type with the double tubing. No doubt your traditional examiners would love it, but the artifacts you get from the tubes bumping into each other are impossible. BTW, that was from a flight medic kit, too - imagine trying to listen to anything in the back of a helo (or in this case, Hercules)?

The one design feature that I think is critical is a single-tube design. More than anything else, thats what cuts external sound.
 
most students all over the world especially in the UK and Asian countries use LIttmann's Classic II SE..I dont' know why, must be the i-need-to-listen-to-my-seniors kinda thing

I feel that it's over priced, I got me self and ADC cardiology..works fine..though i would want a Littmann's cardio..loud! 😀
And then, after i get a Littmann's cardio, I think I would want an electronic.. and after I get an electronic...it's to the gold plated version

Btw, anyone here knows anyone who has the gold version of Littmann's? I think I saw it once somewhere..it's made of gold
 
ericdamiansean said:
most students all over the world especially in the UK and Asian countries use LIttmann's Classic II SE..I dont' know why, must be the i-need-to-listen-to-my-seniors kinda thing

I feel that it's over priced, I got me self and ADC cardiology..works fine..though i would want a Littmann's cardio..loud! 😀
And then, after i get a Littmann's cardio, I think I would want an electronic.. and after I get an electronic...it's to the gold plated version

Btw, anyone here knows anyone who has the gold version of Littmann's? I think I saw it once somewhere..it's made of gold
Click to expand...

Yeah, they have them at allheart.com

But, they're II's, not Masters or III's

I like the all-black one 🙂
 
Anyone ever try the Tycos Harvey Triple Head?
 
flighterdoc said:
LOL, I'm not that much of a geek
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what's wrong with the triple head?
 
It's extremely geeky. I have never seen anyone actually carry one. It implies that you know enough about ascultation to actually need 3 heads.

C
 
Seaglass said:
It's extremely geeky. I have never seen anyone actually carry one. It implies that you know enough about ascultation to actually need 3 heads.

C
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what do they use in 'Scrubs'?
 
ericdamiansean said:
what do they use in 'Scrubs'?
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I think they use the two-tube harveys. Another reason not to get one .....
 
I'll second the idea of permanently putting your name on the scope (either on the tube or on the bell). Mine was a personalized gift, which I thought was a ridiculous extravagance until I saw how often scopes disappear in our clinic. Mine never disappears; no one can think it's theirs.
 
Do MS1s use the stethoscope often ?
 
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