Technology is the center of modern day society. As years and decades have gone by, health facilities are constantly using technology and becoming highly dependent on hospital software (Kumar, R. K, 2011). The implementation of technology has increased nurses efficiency, but also changed the way of patient care. The now available technology has altered the way in which nursing care is carried out. However, the nursing profession has adapted to these changes consequently changing the history of nurse care. Employment of technology in the nursing profession is an end product of the interactions between technical skills, workplace culture, and acceptance (Courtney, Demiris, Alexander, 2005). With improvements in communication, more access to accurate diagnostic devices, use of electronic documentation and advanced alarm systems the nursing seen and heard about today is very different.
The advancement in technology has changed the face and role of nurses today, the increased modernization has led to a developmental increase in technical, smart devices. The introduction of new machines and inventions that can detect and diagnose people with an illness. It is just a common fact that medical equipment used is primarily sourced from a digital platform alongside diagnosis. Taking an example such as an ultrasound, the potential is endless, it allows almost all organs to be imaged safely with near no effects. Nurses can learn from creative machinery like this and discover a way to help a patient faster without having to manually diagnose patients that may be in a vulnerable or time sensitive state. A system that acknowledges the complexity of the human body faster than a health professional itself is hard to not take on board. 7 years ago “Over 95% of heart ailments can be diagnosed accurately using a portable echo machine” (Kumar, R. K, 2011). Statistics like this show that the employment of these new and improved diagnostic tools into healthcare environments is well worthwhile to nurses. An interesting note to address is that the increase in more discoverable diseases can partially be due to these new smart devices however, there is no valid research in NZ yet to back this. Healthcare is a service that is constantly evolving, this is something that should be celebrated as it results in a healthier population, however, it is becoming more and more costly and in fact “out-of-reach for the common man” (Kumar, R. K, 2011). The rapid increase in technology is definitely not something cheap for our economy. In 2009, New Zealand the medical companies made a total estimated profit of $587 million per year (MTANZ, n.d). This statistic showing the relevance of cost to the New Zealand healthcare system to employ these new diagnostic and technical devices that assist medical professionals such as nurses to care for the population. Although technology is costly, the implementation of this is a great cost effective step that allows nurses and the nursing profession in the future to flourish. However, as much as technology has improved the way in which the delivery of health care from nurses is presented there are still negative connotations that surround the increasing use of machinery. The idea around the presence of new software and hospital machinery making the hospital inhumane and barbaric. According to Barnard & Sandelowski, (2001) this forming a distinct alienation between self and body and dividing nurses from their aim of caring for those in need. One of the most important aspects of nursing is to ensure that as health professionals, being in the center of these new innovations they do not lose the humanity in their care. This presents a new concern for the future nurses. Technology is only going to continue to be enhanced and it is vital for nurses to find a balance between new inventions and humanity.
The evolution of the internet and technology has well and truly changed the world and healthcare has no exception to this. Documentation is a vital part in nursing care for developing patient care plans, communication among health professionals, research, education, report summaries and identifying health population trends (Ioanna, P.,2001). Technology has enabled nurses everyday responsibilities and unintentional mistakes to be an easy and quick fix. An advancement in technology has introduced electronic documentation which is a way of keeping patients data and progress in one, organized area that more than one nurse or medical professional can access. Within New Zealand, the quality accuracy and quality of documentation is a critical issue for registered nurses (Blair, W., & Smith, B., 2012). The emphasis on accurate reports and records is vital for health reflections of patients and introducing technological, electronic documentation enables nurses to eliminate many errors and the unreliability of the endless paper documents. Documentation is not only a critical step in New Zealand nursing care but internationally. With the growing trend of more complex and advanced types of documentation, it means a growing trend in the nursing profession. This being, nurses have now got more time to analyze and provide accurate care without having to search and sort through old files in order to recall one's health history or needs. The contribution of improved documentation is unquestionable, it has the capability of savings one's life due to the organizing of individuals care whilst facilitating communication within a group. Nursing documentation no matter how they are developed and kept, have the power to change a patient for the better and the whole dynamic process of nursing care (Ioanna, P. 2001). Nurses are no longer being weighed down with work having to manually enter and look up patients records, this meaning they can focus one more hands on nursing care and be more time efficient when it comes to looking after more than just one sick person. Documentation within nursing care is said to be improved with electronic health records which will have come about with the massive advancing technology trend (Keenan GM, Yakel E, Tschannen D, 2008). As noted, people cannot underestimate how demanding the documentation process is and the need for systematic records. Nurses are in the midst of all this growing technology and it is their job to take and adapt to it to further better those in need. Nurses can progress alongside technology advancements with something as simple as electronic documentation.
Healthcare today is driven by technology and telecommunications. Nurses are constantly facing the challenge of having to learn and integrate these new and current technological inventions into their profession. Simple improvements made from verbal communication to small devices allowing patients to reach nurses on the other side of the hospital have shaped the way in which nurses can perform their profession. Due to the rapid increase in the need to respond to patients rapidly and urgently, healthcare facilities have fostered a number of new communication systems and networks into their infirmary. These have been established for expressing need manually, via computers or electrically whether that be a patient calling for help or nurses contacting suppliers or hunting down medical equipment using advanced location services (Moore, n.d). It is fact that mobile healthcare technologies are not something foreign to the 21st century but as time continues new smaller technologies and more subtle devices that are capable of high tech communication. A massive advantage in the communication trend within nursing care is that now nurses can interact with clients more remotely. Communication within nursing care is essential as even when technology was not as visible nurses were the main communicators between patients and other relevant people. As technology has progressed communication is becoming more vital and involves significant, and selective sharing of confidential information between individuals that play relevant roles within patient care and diagnosis (Rouleau, G., Gagnon, M., & Côté, J., 2015). As modern technology has advanced people now have more access to help people self-diagnose themselves and determine their own health needs through the internet or other technological properties. These driving people away from health care providers such as nursing care (While, 2011). This meaning as the ever-increasing technology continues to advance it becomes more clever, slowly eliminating people's need for face to face care this hugely influencing the nursing profession.This is because if people are continuing to use systems such as ‘Dr. Google’ there will be a decrease in people demanding one on one consults with nurses, doctors or medical professionals. This improved sense of communication through new software and interfaces is allowing people to communicate with the internet rather people such a registered nurse. As new and more complex hospital systems are implemented into the hospital environment there is a new need for nurses to adapt and learn how to cater for these changes in order to continue to care for the unwell.
Technology is changing the ways healthcare works and having a large impact on nursing care. Nursing is becoming more driven by technology and new nurses are becoming more equipped to this due to the increased modernization. The nursing profession will continue to adapt and grow with this increasing trend as more devices and machinery gets implemented into the health care system. There is a constant push for nurses to keep up and use these new technologies which develops a challenge to balance this with substantial humane care. The trend of enhanced and increased technology develops a trend of nurses having access to quicker diagnosis, efficient communication, and electronic documentation. This is altering nursing care as the world knows it, some agreeing that it is for the best, however, concerns have been also expressed. Communication and human connection are nursing skills nurses are to be actively involved as technology is being constantly introduced.