Out with the old, in with the new. That was the theme for Drexel’s College of Nursing and Health Professions on Monday as more than 300 nursing students received an iPod touch instead of traditional textbooks.

“Our students are thrilled,” Dr. Gloria Donnelly, the Dean and Professor at the College of Nursing and Health Professions, told The Loop.

Donnelly said the school felt it was time to move on to newer technology. Drexel has been using PDAs for seven years, but an alumni study showed that only 25-30 percent of students were still using the devices.

The solution: the iPod touch.

Donnelly said the only major concern the faculty has was getting the textbooks the school used onto the iPod touch. As it turns out, the provider of the text books, Skyscape.com was already working with Apple to get its iPod touch app into the App Store.

What’s more students can connect to Skyscape.com four times a year and have their books automatically updated to the newest version.

While many in the technology sector may view this as a step forward because of the device being used, Donnelly sees it as a step forward in patient care.

“That’s the major goal — patient care,” said Donnelly. “Depending on what study you read, the seventh or eighth leading cause of death is error. We are heavily focusing on patient safety. What better way to school the students than to look things up, to check something at the bedside.”

Drexel isn’t discounting the use of traditional methods of diagnosing problems, but the iPod touch can help if there are any questions.

“We want patients to understand what’s happening with them,” said Donnelly. “It’s really a win/win.”