It is year 2018 and technology has come a long way in making our lives easier and honestly, a bit more entertaining. Amongst the face-scanning iPhones, self-driving vehicles and 3-D printed houses, technology has also entered various industries on a global level to increase precision and effectiveness as needed. We see this tech evolution making a huge impact in the healthcare industry, where nurses are able to give patients a higher chance at a longer life in parts of patient care that weren’t an option before. Here are some different angles of how tech and nursing are getting along:
Tech in ICU
Karen Higgins, nurse of 28 years and past President of the Massachusetts Nurses Association chimes in on technology being an essential advancement for ICU patients:
“People ask me what is the biggest change in nursing over the years, and my answer is advancements in both technology and medications and also the patients themselves. Many of the patients I care for in the ICU would not be alive 10 or 20 years ago. New technology and medications are wonderful in that they give more patients a chance to survive and live longer[…]” –
Tech and Nursing Education
Brittney Wilson, BSN, RN, also known as The Nerdy Nurse expresses that while technology advances in healthcare are a given, nurse education needs to catch up:
“Technology improves the practices of medicine, and nursing. It will continue to advance year after year. In order to prepare students to handle such changes, nursing education needs to evolve accordingly. Embracing these new technologies enables us to become nursing professionals who are prepared to provide the best possible patient care.”
Electronic Health Records
USA TODAY in an article called, Career Advice: 4 Ways the Nursing Profession is Changing talks about the benefits of Electronic health records(EHR):
“Electronic health records (EHR) systems have become the norm, making updated patient data accessible instantly. And non-invasive diagnostic tools have started taking hold as well, changing how nurses interact with patients. Nurses need to be tech-savvy, from the latest medical technology to mobile phone apps that can help them organize their schedules and coordinate patient care.”
To reiterate the benefits of taking health records into the digital space, Elika Salimi, 3rd Year Health Scholar at HOAG Hospital states,
“I’ve seen the positive impact that having an electronic medical record system has had at HOAG hospital and the healthcare industry overall. Sharing information about patients amongst providers is easier and more efficient than ever, which directly results in optimum patient care.”
A Second Set of Eyes
An article on The Gypsy Nurse called The Latest Trends and Technology in Nursing 2018 talks about hospitals implementing technological command centers to serve as a second set of eyes for nurses:
“Inspired by NASA, many hospitals are implementing command centers that serve as a ‘mission control’ for all of the services and functions related to patient care. Today’s nurses are finding themselves able to interact with a second set of eyes and also have help in managing daily bottlenecks.
It’s fascinating to see how technology being implemented into our industry can impact so many different levels of our industry besides directly with the patient. However, the truth we can all agree on is that despite all of the tech upgrades to the industry, tech will never come before the compassion and instinct that serves as the lifeline of the healthcare industry.
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