Technology For Nurses: Balancing Technology with Nursing Care
Nurses work on the front lines of healthcare, dealing directly with patients. That鈥檚 the case whether they work at a doctor鈥檚 office or in a hospital emergency room. What鈥檚 different today is the听technology for nurses听that permeates the industry.
Many of the jobs that nurses once had to handle, such as adding information by hand to a medical chart, have long been taken over by innovative technology.听Learning how to balance听technology听with personal nursing care is one of the issues addressed in degree programs in nursing, such as the听RN to BSN program听or any master鈥檚 degree program.
Technology For Nurses in Modern Healthcare
New technology is added to the list of听technology for nurses routinely.听However, there are some areas that have emerged new nurses must know how to handle. They include the following:
Electronic Healthcare Records
Of all the听technology for nurses, this is the one they typically interact with the most.听Under a federal mandate from the Obama Administration, all healthcare operations shifted to electronic healthcare records many years ago. Nurses need to know how to enter information into the system听and听any of its functions. That can include prompts when a certain medication may conflict with something that was taken in the past.听听These systems also can transmit information between medical providers, although healthcare professionals are still trying to create a system that offers听.
IV Pumps
This is one of many medical devices that nurses often use. An IV pump or IV infusion controls the amount of intravenous drugs received by a patient. Smart IV pumps have software that prevents errors in medication, alerting nurses if a patient is receiving too much or too little of needed medication,听听to the journal of the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation.
Medication Carts
Medication carts have long been used by nurses. The carts have drawers for drugs. Nurses typically prepare medication for patients in a special room or, in some cases, can do so in the patient鈥檚 room. However,听modern technology听now allows nurses to work from a mobile computing station that helps them prepare medication doses for patients. These carts also have a touch-panel screen that allows nurses to access a patient鈥檚 healthcare records. That leads to faster and safer delivery of needed drugs to patients.
Call Bell Systems
Call bell systems have been a听technology for nurses听for decades. But听innovative technology听now allows the calls made by patients to get sent to mobile devices carried by nurses, allowing them to respond faster and meet a patient鈥檚 needs. Some systems, especially those in long-term care homes, may have specialized call tones that let a nurse know immediately what type of service a patient needs.
Patient Beds
Patient beds are now full of听technology for nurses听to use that can improve patient care. The exact nature of the bed can vary from hospital to hospital. However, smart hospital beds contain monitoring systems with sensors that can detect a patient鈥檚 temperature, pulse rate, blood, oxygen, and pressure. They can also utilize sensors to cut down on issues such as bedsores.
These are some of the areas of听technology for nurses听that are changing the profession. For those wishing to move into higher levels of responsibility in the field, knowledge in these areas will prove necessary for success in your career.