To the untrained eye, and ear, stethoscopes all look the same and perform the same function. There’s no real different when you look at these tools of the medical trade. However, when you look below the surface, you will find that there are subtle differences that could make or break the solution in the real world.
The basic models that students use, are often times going to amplify the sound but will not be the same level that professionals need. It’s with that in mind that the following comparison of stethoscopes between doctors and nurses has been created.
Knowing the difference between the two could factor in several answers to the question of which one you’d like to utilize or at least shine light on the different elements that modern technology brings to the medical world.
Doctors and Technology
Not all doctors require high tech when it comes to stethoscopes. Some of them utilize durable, amplified solutions that are “basic” when compared to more complicated solutions. That’s not to say that there aren’t some regular doctors that don’t want higher tech, it’s just a matter of preference at a certain level.
The discipline if a physician is what changes the options that they choose to utilize. For instance, a doctor that is charge of cardiology will be listening for very different things than a doctor of podiatry would listen for.
Medicine is often times lumped into a “one size fits all” solution for people, but it’s not really that way from the doctor’s perspective. Different disciplines require different tools, and even the mighty stethoscope requires a bit of difference from the standard solution. As a rule of thumb the following 4 elements are usually the difference maker in regards to medicine:
- Amplification
- Noise Reduction
- Durability
- Cost
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For Nurses Durability Matters Most
Nurses have a different role to play in the medical world, and one that is just as important as doctors. However, they will find themselves running through halls, and working with a variety of patients. This constant movement requires durability when it comes to utilizing a stethoscope, and that’s something that most people don’t really understand. The durability of one of these items is everything to a nurse that’s on the go, especially when dealing with the break neck speed of the ER.
Aside from the durability, nurses look at for the amplification to be on par with their needs. Checking pulse, breathing, and heart rate are the main goals of diagnostic components for a nurse. Without these measurements, a patient would not be able to traverse forward in the medical facilities that are alive and well today.
Aside from the issue of amplification and durability, cost plays a minor role, but it really is a matter of the basics when it comes to most nurses. There are some nursing professionals that are also doctors, and for those practitioners, the above 4 elements come into play for them as well.
In the end, picking out stethoscopes is a tough process. There are some minor and major differences at play, and in the end, they right choice can help save lives.
