Doctors swap pagers for smartphones

Years after most people switched from pagers to cell phones, doctors kept beepers at their sides because of poor cell reception in hospitals and fears that the devices would interfere with sensitive medical equipment. But those issues have now been resolved, according to Dr. Dan Shine, who leads the internal medicine service at NYU Langone Medical Center. The hospital is currently piloting a new smart phone program, hoping to eventually pull the plug on pagers for good. It issued a dozen iPhones to medical staff in its Emergency Department late last month after successfully incorporating 40 iPhones into Shine's internal medicine team eight months ago.