Comparison

Emergency Manual vs ECGRef

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Emergency Manual

This free medical app provides cognitive aids and checklists for 25 critical perioperative events. It serves as a drug dosing reference and includes crisis management tips for clinicians. Designed for self-study and real-time use during emergencies.

Highlights
  • Cognitive aids for 25 critical perioperative events
  • Checklists for emergencies
  • Drug dosing and concentration reference
  • Crisis resource management tips
  • Suitable for self-study
  • Real-time cognitive aid during crises
Features
Read full description

Despite best intentions, well-trained clinicians often miss known key steps during crises. This free perioperative Emergency Manual by the Stanford Anesthesia Cognitive Aid Program (SACAP) includes a set of cognitive aids and checklists for 25 critical perioperative events including cardiac arrest, bronchospasm, LAST, malignant hyperthermia, unanticipated difficult airway, and the rest of the key perioperative chief complaints. It includes crisis resource management tips, and serves as a drug dosing and concentration reference for relevant medications. The app can be used for self-study, and most importantly, as a cognitive aid during perioperative crises. The Emergency Manual has been used by thousands of anesthesiologists around the world, and is now available on the iPhone! Disclaimers: The material in this app is not intended to be a substitute for sound medical knowledge and training. Clinicians should always use their clinical judgment and decision making for patient management. Departure from the information presented here is encouraged as appropriate, since situations can vary widely.

About

ECGRef

An educational reference for interpreting electrocardiograms, this app covers electrophysiology, rhythm recognition, and common patterns. It aims to assist clinicians and students in accurate bedside ECG analysis.

Highlights
  • Electrophysiology concepts
  • Rhythm recognition
  • Clinically relevant patterns
  • Bedside ECG analysis support
  • Educational reference
Features
Read full description

ECG interpretation, organized for the bedside. ECGRef is a comprehensive electrocardiogram reference for physicians, nurses, advanced practice clinicians, medical students, and other healthcare learners. Use a structured interpretation workflow, review rhythm patterns, explore ECG leads, check diagnostic criteria, and perform commonly used ECG calculations all in one focused reference. FEATURES • Step-by-step ECG interpretation workflow • Rhythm recognition and clinically relevant pattern review • Interactive frontal-plane and precordial lead explorer • Searchable library of ECG terminology and concepts • ECG calculators for heart rate, QTc, cardiac axis, ventricular hypertrophy, bundle branch block, wide-complex tachycardia, and more • Clinical risk tools • Bedside takeaways, common pitfalls, and “do not miss” findings • Favorites, global search, related content, and personal notes ECGRef connects core electrophysiology with practical ECG analysis. Whether you are learning a systematic approach, reviewing an unfamiliar rhythm, or checking a calculation, the app makes relevant information easy to find. Created by Rishi Kumar, MD, FACC (“RK.MD”), an academic adult cardiothoracic anesthesiologist and cardiovascular ICU intensivist committed to free, open-access medical education. Learn more at https://rk.md ECGRef is intended for educational and informational purposes only. It does not provide medical advice and is not a substitute for professional judgment, diagnosis, or treatment. Clinical findings and calculations must be independently verified and interpreted in the context of the individual patient. Seek guidance from a qualified healthcare professional regarding any medical condition. Do not disregard or delay professional medical advice because of information provided by this app.

Screenshots

Emergency Manual4 screens
ECGRef4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: Emergency Manual at 16.0 against ECGRef's 26.0. On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Emergency Manual against 4.9 for ECGRef. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 12 and 32 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
Emergency Manual versus ECGRef: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterEmergency ManualECGRef
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (12 ratings) — better4.9 (32 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings1232 — better
Update frequency—Every 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB13 MB
Age rating12+17+
DeveloperRobert ArrigoRishi Kumar

Customer experience

Emergency Manual

All ratings12 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

ECGRef

All ratings31 ratings
Positive96.8%
Neutral3.2%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Emergency Manual

No in-app purchases

None

ECGRef

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Emergency Manual free?
Emergency Manual is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is ECGRef free?
ECGRef is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Emergency Manual or ECGRef?
Emergency Manual is rated higher. Emergency Manual averages 5.0 out of 5 from 12 ratings, while ECGRef averages 4.9 from 32 ratings.
Do Emergency Manual or ECGRef have ads?
Neither Emergency Manual nor ECGRef shows ads.

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