Software review

At last, someone has produced a piece of software specifically designed to support the powerful activity of role-play. 'At the Doctor's' is the first in a series that helps practitioners create realistic environments for children to experience. It is designed to complement a role-play area set up as a doctor's surgery. Using the computer, children can take patient details, enter information about the symptoms, give treatments and print out prescriptions.

Children take on the role of patient, receptionist, doctor or nurse while the software guides them through the process of diagnosing and treating patients. First stop is the waiting room where the receptionist chooses who is next, enters their details and finds out what's wrong. Then comes the examination where children can try out the doctor's instruments. After diagnosis the nurse treats the patient from the on-screen medicine cabinet! Finally there is the prescription - this presents a record of the information entered into the computer and can be printed.