Personal Electronic Device Use
Students must use telephones, cell phones, computers, tablets, smartwatches, and other electronic devices professionally during clinical education experiences. Wearing a watch or smartwatch is encouraged by the UNL ATP faculty for the purpose of emergencies and to assist with taking vitals.
Personal cell phones and other personal electronic devices must remain stored and out of sight during clinical rotations and should be available only for emergency purposes. Personal device use can distract from patient care, reduce attention to the clinical environment, and create potential patient privacy or HIPAA concern, particularly when devices are used for photography, recording, messaging, or social media.
If a student is expecting an urgent or necessary call, the student should inform the preceptor in advance. When responding to the call, the student must remove themselves from the athletic training facility, patient-care area, or practice or competition space and address the matter in an appropriate private location.
Students must not contact patients using personal phone numbers, personal email accounts, social media platforms, or personal electronic devices. Patient communication must occur only through preceptor-approved methods and devices.
Communication with University of Nebraska–Lincoln MSAT faculty and preceptors by telephone or text message should be limited to professional matters. Nonprofessional communication is permitted only with prior approval. After-hours communication should be reserved for urgent or emergency situations.
Clinical Site Telephone Use
Clinical site telephones and electronic devices must not be used for personal communication. Students must not make long-distance or toll calls without approval or have personal calls or messages forwarded to a clinical site.
When answering a clinical site telephone, students should use a professional greeting, such as:
“Hello, [name of clinical site], this is [student name]. How may I assist you?”
Students must accurately document telephone messages, including the caller’s name, date, time, contact information, and message, and promptly deliver the information to the appropriate individual.