what equipment should I actually buy?

[Depakote]

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there's an equipment sale on campus today...

I figure I'll need a stethoscope... is the cardiology III still the gold standard?

what else should I buy?

can I afford to bide my time until my third year or should I get this taken care of now while I can get a discount?

thanks.

 

[ChubbyChaser]

one word- ebay!

 

[lord_jeebus]

See if you can try the stethoscope before you buy.

Cardiology III is the Gold Standard like Netter is the Gold Standard. Top choice for people who haven't tried anything else. It is pretty good though.

Agree with above ebay suggestion as equipment sales usually don't offer better prices than that.

 

[VPDcurt]

See if you can try the stethoscope before you buy.

Cardiology III is the Gold Standard like Netter is the Gold Standard. Top choice for people who haven't tried anything else. It is pretty good though.

Agree with above ebay suggestion as equipment sales usually don't offer better prices than that.

Netter is awesome.

 

[njbmd]

there's an equipment sale on campus today...

I figure I'll need a stethoscope... is the cardiology III still the gold standard?

what else should I buy?

can I afford to bide my time until my third year or should I get this taken care of now while I can get a discount?

thanks.

Buy your stethoscope (and try before buying) but you are likely to be able to get a nice deal on a diagnostic set from a 4th year medical student who matches into ortho, surgery or derm and wants to unload their kit.

You likely don't even need to purchase diagnostic kits unless most of the hospitals that you rotate through are poorly equipped. You can also share the cost of a "slightly used" diagnostic kit with another student. EBay is a great source of getting these kits that people want to unload.

 

[lord_jeebus]

Netter is awesome.

But have you tried Sobotta, Clemente, Moses, or Thieme?

 

[45408]

But have you tried Sobotta, Clemente, Moses, or Thieme?

Moses is nice if you want to admire non-cadaver female anatomy, but I'd rather look at Netter's ideal drawings to figure out what everything should look like. I don't need cadaver photos - I had a whole freakin' cadaver in the anatomy lab. I want to know the schematics of it all. Besides, the cadavers in Moses weren't that great. If you want some NICE cadavers, look at the Acklands DVDs.

 

[dogpython]

ill have to agree with the ebay people...got all of my equipment from there (new wa elite stethoscope and new diagnostic set) for much less than you can get it from the school or the dealers even with their "discounts", netter is good, rohen is good for real cadaver pictures, buy books online too (intl ed. are a lot cheaper) or used from ebay or textbooks.com...just my $0.02

 

[Abilene85]

Depakote, what did you end up going with? I tried Cardiology III, Welch Allyn Harvey Elite, and Welch Allyn Harvey DLX. I like the DLX, but had to order it. And I was so excited about coming home to listen to my dogs' heartbeats tonight...

 

[Depakote]

Depakote, what did you end up going with? I tried Cardiology III, Welch Allyn Harvey Elite, and Welch Allyn Harvey DLX. I like the DLX, but had to order it. And I was so excited about coming home to listen to my dogs' heartbeats tonight...

Didn't wind up getting anything today. I have a stethoscope that I was given prior to starting school. I'm sure it's no where near as good as a Cardio III (or the rest), but I'm going to use that at least through this year (maybe next). I'll worry about buying a good one closer to when it comes time to use it.

 

[Law2Doc]

there's an equipment sale on campus today...

I figure I'll need a stethoscope... is the cardiology III still the gold standard?

what else should I buy?

can I afford to bide my time until my third year or should I get this taken care of now while I can get a discount?

thanks.

As others have said, see what deals you can get via upper classmen and ebay before buying stuff. There is no rule that says you need any particular name brand equipment -- if it works passably it will get you through med school. You can buy nicer equipment when you finish. Most people find stethoscopes, reflex hammers and pen lights to be necessities. Ophthalmoscopes are necessary some places, but not everywhere -- see if you can scope out the hospital rooms and see what they have hanging on the wall and you will know if you need your own. You are unlikely to have much use for a bloodpressure cuff, although many schools will try to sell you one-- I have never seen a hospital room without access to one of those, and generally you copy the BP info from the nursing charts anyhow.

 

[lord_jeebus]

As others have said, see what deals you can get via upper classmen and ebay before buying stuff. There is no rule that says you need any particular name brand equipment -- if it works passably it will get you through med school. You can buy nicer equipment when you finish. Most people find stethoscopes, reflex hammers and pen lights to be necessities. Ophthalmoscopes are necessary some places, but not everywhere -- see if you can scope out the hospital rooms and see what they have hanging on the wall and you will know if you need your own. You are unlikely to have much use for a bloodpressure cuff, although many schools will try to sell you one-- I have never seen a hospital room without access to one of those, and generally you copy the BP info from the nursing charts anyhow.

Even if the scopes aren't hanging, I've never seen a hospital where the nurses cannot get you an otoscope or ophthalmoscope if you need one.

 

[Law2Doc]

Even if the scopes aren't hanging, I've never seen a hospital where the nurses cannot get you an otoscope or ophthalmoscope if you need one.

When you have to see multiple patients on multiple floors/buildings, it becomes a huge pain to have nurses hunt one down at each location. There are definitely places where it pays to own your own, if you can get it cheaply. Some places may not have this problem, but many do.

 

[Pinkertinkle]

When you have to see multiple patients on multiple floors/buildings, it becomes a huge pain to have nurses hunt one down at each location. There are definitely places where it pays to own your own, if you can get it cheaply. Some places may not have this problem, but many do.

Agreed. I'd get an oto/ophthalmoscope, I recommend the Welsh Allyn 3.5V ones. Nice and bright.

 

[deuist]

When you have to see multiple patients on multiple floors/buildings, it becomes a huge pain to have nurses hunt one down at each location. There are definitely places where it pays to own your own, if you can get it cheaply. Some places may not have this problem, but many do.

When I did my neurology rotation, I had to have an ophthalmoscope handy with me at all times to do fundoscopic regular exams. I haven't needed it so far for other rotations.