Lockup Doc

You may be surprised to hear that despite being a physician tech enthusiast who has a blog, Twitter and Facebook accounts, and a MacBook, I do not own a smartphone. I’ll tell you why.

I’ve previously described the challenges and rewards of working as a correctional psychiatrist, but I did not go into any detail about electronics in correctional settings. Since the overriding objective of jails and prisons is to maintain a secure environment, all staff members give up certain conveniences that we’ve all grown accustomed to on the outside.

Today, so many electronic gadgets are capable of making phone calls and connecting to the internet. In the hands of  inmates, such devices could allow escapes to be planned, the coordination of gang activity, and the running of illegal businesses from within the prison walls. Because either careless or corrupt actions of staff can result in electronics being possessed by prisoners, staff cannot bring in their own devices.

Cell phones of all types are very high on this list of banned items. In fact, cell phones have become one of the major contraband items in prisons around the world. In “shakedowns” where surprise searches of inmate property are conducted, cell phones rank right up there with weapons and drugs in terms of items security staff is trying to find. Some electronics may be allowed in some facilities, but generally speaking, most gadgets are not allowed.

However, I really rely on portable medication programs such as Epocrates that allow me to look up medication dosing information, side effects, and drug interactions. Although I can do all of this on a regular computer, in corrections I often find myself in settings such as segregation units where I do not have computer access. I need a device that I can use both inside and outside of correctional environments. This is where my trusty Palm PDA comes to the rescue!

I had to obtain special permission to bring my Palm PDA into the facilities where I work. However, if I had asked to bring in an iPhone or any other smartphone, the answer would have clearly been no. I therefore choose to keep using my outdated but still very useful PDA even though the rest of the world has graduated on to smartphones. I use a regular cellphone with internet access to complement my Palm when when I’m away from the prison setting.

I’ll admit that I did recently acquire an iPod Touch. I really like it, but due to some technical differences between the Palm PDA and iPod Touch, I will not be allowed to bring the iPod Touch into prison. So, for now, I hope my PDA keeps on ticking, and I hope Epocrates keeps offering application updates for Palm OS!

Photo Credit: Themactep via Flickr