Hospitals use iPods to assist induction training

Two hospitals in Glasgow are using iPod music players to train new staff.

The gadgets give new recruits an "audio induction" to the workplace, which is followed by a computer-based knowledge test.

Hospital managers at NHS Greater Glasgow say the iPod tours can be used to train staff about issues like workplace safety, infection control and coping with violence.

The MP3-players are being used in operating theatres at Glasgow Royal Infirmary and in the labour ward and neonatal unit at the Princess Royal Maternity Hospital.

They are also being introduced at the Western Infirmary's Accident and Emergency department.

Other health authorities in the UK and Europe are now said to have expressed an interest in the Voicemap software, developed in Australia, that is being used.

Alastair Kirk, training and development manager at NHS Greater Glasgow, said: "Using technology means we can make sure all new staff are trained to exactly the same standard.

"That is a big improvement on a system that relies on other staff and can therefore be vulnerable to human error. Staff find this a very enjoyable way to train and they start their job with more confidence".