30 Best Nursing Apps
We are all constantly using our phones keeping in touch with friends and family and staying connected on social media, but did you know there is a huge array of nursing apps to help make your job as a nurse enriching, fun, and easier?
Whether you’re a nursing student studying for an exam or cross-referencing a specific drug to treat a patient, apps for nursing offer a variety of functions for nurses.
To help you navigate the long list, we’ve pulled together the best nursing apps that will help you focus on patient care by providing immediate access to essential reference tools and tips.
While you might not want to download all 30 apps, we recommend skimming through the list and trying out the ones that interest you the most!
1. Medscape
This app for nursing is extremely popular. It offers you tons of medical content, plus you can keep current with news for your nursing specialty with the latest medical news and expert commentary, drug and disease information, and relevant professional education.
Plus, Medscape offers other perks such as image collectors, formulary info, procedural articles and a medical calculator.
iPhone or Android
2. Lippincott Nursing Advisor
This nursing app has thousands of evidence-based, clinical entries you can quickly search by keyword or category.
iPhone or Android
3. Pill Identifier
With this handy app, you can quickly and easily search over 14,000 pills based on characteristics like imprint, drug name, strength, colour, or shape.
iPhone or Android
4. Lab Values Medical Reference
This app is all you need to make sense of lab results for commonly ordered panels and medical analyses.
iPhone or Android
5. MDCalc
You can make complex calculations quickly with this nursing app, such as risk scores, algorithms, equations, formulas, classifications, and dosing calculators.
iPhone or Android
6. ECG Guide
This nursing app clearly describes common and complex arrhythmias and ECG findings.
iPhone or Android
7. uCentral from Unbound Medicine
An easy app to quickly look up and reference certain meds. Many nursing programs require students to use this app and many report still using it long after graduation!
If you're looking for a new nursing job check out our nursing job board where you can search by keyword or location. New jobs get posted daily!
8. Eponyms
With this app, you’ll have an easier time remembering both common and uncommon medical terms, of which Eponyms features hundreds of.
iPhone or Android
9. Classic Anatomy
Flex your knowledge of anatomy with this beautifully illustrated quiz app. Challenge your friends and coworkers.
Only available on iPhone
10. IDdx
You can match infectious disease signs and symptoms by searching IDdx by sign, symptom, geographical area, or type. You’ll get a list of many related infectious diseases that can be sorted into epidemiological factors and regions. The app also displays pictures for diagnostics and support for emergency situations.
Only available on iPhone
11. Med Mnemonics
This app features over 1,900 acronyms, rhymes and memory tricks to help you learn and remember critical information such as medical conditions, symptoms, and terminology. It’s easy and fun to use, and you can even delete, edit and add your own personalized mnemonics.
iPhone or Android
12. MediBabble
If English isn’t your first language or that of your patients, you can easily communicate and improve care with this translation tool of medical phrases organized in a standardized history-taking format.
Only available on iPhone
13. Nursing Dictionary
This reference app for nurses contains helpful information like medical terms, medications and acronyms.
iPhone or Android
14. Pedi Stat
Pedi STAT provides critical information for RNs caring for patients in a pediatric, emergency, or critical care environment. All the necessary data for this type of care is included, such as weight-based and age specific medication dosages and equipment sizes.
iPhone or Android
15. Resuscitation!
This fun, virtual patient simulator lets you be in control of treatment and diagnosis.
iPhone or Android
16. Figure 1
This visual app shares clinical cases and treatment expertise.
iPhone or Android
17. Nursing Central
Nursing Central is a leading, all-in-one clinical resource for nurses that allows you to enter symptoms and receive a list of possible conditions.
It provides disease, drug and test information, a dictionary, literature searching, and more.
iPhone or Android
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18. OB Wheel
This digitized version of the paper obstetrics wheel you’re familiar with has some improvements, as it allows for more flexibility due to irregularities and has bookmarking capabilities.
iPhone or Android
19. Pocket Body: Musculoskeletal by Pocket Anatomy
This app gives you a comprehensive guide to the musculoskeletal system and will help refresh your memory if you’ve lost that information post-graduation!
iPhone
20. Skyscape Medical Resources
This resource provides a medical calculator, prescription and over the counter drug information, and access to a database of medical journals and industry news.
iPhone or Android
21. Fast Facts for Critical Care
This simple, full-color guide to critical care treatment includes procedural guides and dosage calculations.
iPhone
22. Epocrates Essentials
This hugely popular platform is really more than an app as it gives you the type and amount of information that a full encyclopedia does. When you subscribe, you get access to drug information, including a pill guide and interaction warnings, available samples, and an anatomy, symptom, and disease guide.
iPhone or Android
23. Heart Murmurs Pro
With this app, you can learn to listen to and understand over 20 different heart sounds and gain access to medical databases for more.
iPhone or Android
24. Diseases Dictionary
This app provides plenty of information about medical disorders and diseases and teaches you about symptoms, treatments, and medical terminology.
iPhone or Android
25. Nursing Essentials
This helpful resource is easy to use, whether you are studying for specific coursework or need to brush up on general information. Nursing Essentials also offers bookmarks, notes sections, and a medical calculator.
iPhone or Android
26. Nurse’s Pocket Guide
You can accurately diagnose and develop effective care plans with this comprehensive app that includes 440 medical conditions. Care plan guides and a searchable index allows for quick navigation.
iPhone or Android
27. Nursegrid
Nursegrid was developed by nurses to help manage the scheduling process and nursing departments. Nurses can connect with other nurses within their department and see who they are working with, communicate via messaging and request a shift swap.
iPhone or Android
28. NCLEX Flashcards
This is a great app not only for students but also for those who could use a refresher. The NCLEX Flashcards app has over 2,400 premade flashcards.
iPhone or Android
29. Nurse Assist
This app supports entry-level nurses in critical care settings by providing crucial bedside assist tools and information. Features include an alarm system for reminders to turn/position immobile patients.
Only available on iPhone
30. Nursing Assistant
This app offers a high-level overview of different degrees and career paths, related skills and technologies, earning potential, and employment outlooks.
Android
As you can see, there is no end to the amount of information and resources for nurses out there, and this is shown through the large number of nursing apps.
There really is something for everyone - we’ve introduced the 34 best nursing apps in this list, which are for anyone from nursing students to experienced RNs from various health care settings.
Have one you use that wasn’t included in the list? Let us know!
Author Bio:
Emma Caplan writes and edits client-facing documents and takes pride in making them sales-ready and reader-friendly. She has additional experience in quality control and proofreading. She has written articles and podcast summaries for the Vancouver Real Estate Podcast, edited fiction and non-fiction books, and volunteers as a copy editor for Editors BC’s West Coast Editor and Students for High Impact Charities.
Emma has also earned a certificate in editing and a bachelor of management degree. In her free time, Emma enjoys hiking, travelling, and creating jewelry. Connect with her on LinkedIn.