Building off our recent Holiday Book List post, and on previous Gift guides, here are a few gift ideas for the medical or healthcare profession student in your life. These suggestions include both light-hearted and practical ideas, from stocking stuffer to larger items. Regardless of what you choose, your gift will show your cared one that you support them on their journey to becoming a practitioner of the healing arts.
* Giant Microbes
The always popular plush Giant Microbes are really getting into the holiday spirit this year by releasing a stocking stuffer collection, literally in a stocking! The collection includes:
- Penicillin with red, green and white caps
- Limited Edition Green Amoeba with scarf and ear muffs
- Dust Mite with reindeer antlers
- Salmonella with holly embroidery
- Red Blood Cell with snowflake embroidery
Additional collections can be ordered in Christmas tree or wreath boxes.
* Brain Slice Coasters
Budding neurologist or neurosurgeon in your midst? Check out these brain slice translucent coasters. They look pretty neat, especially when stacked! The set includes ten 4" x 4" coasters, hand wash only.
Looking for something to put on those snazzy coasters you just picked up? How about this Black & Decker personal coffee maker with included mug? The Brew 'N Go has a permanent filter and the mug is designed to fit most car cupholders.
Other novelty mug ideas include:
* Amazon Echo
The Amazon Echo is a voice-activated speaker system that is powered by Amazon's Alexa voice assistant. While it does not have any direct healthcare application (yet), the device is useful for providing news, weather, sports, and other information. The Echo is also a pretty decent speaker and can play music from Pandora, Spotify, Amazon Music, and other streaming services. Through its skills platform (think app store), it can be extended to perform a wide range of functions like hailing an Uber, ordering a pizza, and many more. If you have a connected house (such as Phillips Hue lights or a Nest thermostat), you can use Alexa to control those devices with voice commands as well. The Echo does have some rough edges - you have to speak clearly and concisely for it to work really well. While it will understand multiple people, it's best to keep your phrasing simple. Also, don't expect Alexa to magically answer any question you through at it. The search function works best when you ask simple, close-ended, fact based questions like "What is the capital of Florida?", but not so well with broader, open ended questions like "What is the best time of year to visit Florida?"
* Stethoscope
If your loved one is new to their training, a stethoscope is a great way to both look the part and gain a useful tool. If they are already in training but have a budget stethoscope, upgrade them to a higher quality one. The Littmann line is well regarded and comes in a wide range of styles and options. For a basic choice, a Classic III is a fine place to start:
And last but not least, when in doubt, you cannot go wrong with an Amazon Gift Card to let them get that perfect esoteric item for themselves:
This post first appeared on Scrub Notes: A Blog For Med Students, please read the originial post: here
