Technology & Education in Nursing: Where Are We Heading?


Technology in nursing

The current healthcare system is being remodeled from phase 3.0 and moving toward phase 4.0 in conjunction with the era of industrial 4.0. 

Artificial intelligence and nanotechnology are the most talked about topics yet the basic aspects of nursing that involve care and human touch are irreplaceable and cannot be replaced with modern medication. 

However, inevitably this revolution is eliciting some transformation in healthcare teaching. In this article, we will discuss how technology is changing the nursing world and the way it is taught.

Nursing: How did it start?

The origin of nursing started far before the 19th century, and was mostly home based and family-centered. Florence Nightingale, an heir of a wealthy family, believed that well-educated women, using scientific principles and informed education about healthy lifestyles, could dramatically improve the care of sick patients.

Florence Nightingale
Florence Nightingale a.k.a The Lady of the Lamp

In 1854, in the midst of the Crimean War, Nightingale had the opportunity to prove her beliefs during Crimean War. The wounded soldiers’ survival rate increased. 

Upon her return to Great Britain at the end of the 19th century, Nightingale successfully established a nursing education program in a number of hospitals. In 1798, New York, Valentine Seaman, a physician, organized maternity lectures course for nurses.

Dr. Joseph Warrington, founder of Nurse Society of Philadelphia (Nurse Charity of Philadelphia) recognized the importance of quality nursing care, encouraging women to engage in evidence-based practices and pursue nursing as a career. 

By 1900, approximately 400 to 800 schools of nursing were in operation in the UK. Traditionally, nurses learned nursing theory in a conventional classroom-based setting. To be equipped with proficient nursing skills, nurses were required to supplement this with hands-on and demonstrated learning of various procedures in a clinical setting. 

Technology’s impact on nursing today

technology impact nursing
Photo by Tom Claes on Unsplash

While some nurses are opposed to new technology because it removes personal connection, a poll found that 82% of the nurses feel it improves patient care. For them, the new technologies accessible in health systems enable them to reclaim time in their day—and, with nurse burnout on the rise, they may be able to avoid leaving their practice environment.

Here are some examples of how today’s technology is influencing nursing practice:

Decrease in human error

Human mistakes can be reduced using new technologies. Nurses who work long shifts or operate in understaffed units are more likely to make errors. Routine operations have been simplified thanks to modern medical technologies.

Automated IV pumps, for example, may measure the dose of medication administered to patients. This makes adjusting drip quantities and dosages a lot easier. Electronic Health Records (EHR) also aid in the reduction of errors at the bedside. EHRs can assist decrease duplication of testing and treatment delays since the data is easily available.

Nurse shortage

With a global nurse shortage, implementing technology to support nursing tasks is becoming increasingly important to keep up with the demands on health care. Innovations can help nurses manage multiple time-consuming responsibilities by alleviating some of the burden of many repetitive tasks.

Improvement in accessibility

EHRs have revolutionised the field of healthcare information technology. A computerised representation of a patient’s medical history is called an electronic health record. It might include things like progress notes, providers, issues, prescriptions, lab results, and so on. 

By increasing the quality and clarity of medical records and making data freely available to healthcare providers, doctors, and patients, EHRs can enhance patient care.

Many healthcare providers have now implemented technology that enhance evidence-based nursing practise and provide data-enabled clinical decision-making. 

For nurses, this helps to standardise care delivery inside their organisations, as well as throughout the profession as a whole, leading in higher quality care across the whole health continuum. These solutions also aid in the reduction of clinical mistakes and administrative delays, both of which can have an adverse effect on the overall quality of treatment given.

Enhances communication

Instant messaging and team collaboration solutions that allow multi-disciplinary teams are increasingly facilitating communication across healthcare settings. This implies that coordinating care will be more simplified and hence, more efficient for nurses, who often provide the key piece services of these teams.

Improved scheduling software allows employees to maintain standards of care across hand-overs and departments, while point-of-care testing and access to bedside test results minimise the time it takes to identify and diagnose.

Teaching nursing in this digital era

digital era
Photo by Daniel Frank on Unsplash

Evolution and change has occurred across the decades in how nurses are trained and, in the 21st century, nurse learning experience has been enhanced incredibly. Nursing informatics is a blooming field within the nursing profession. 

Accordingly, electronic and digital technology are now incorporated into classical classroom teaching. Nursing students are one of the under-graduates in higher education required to utilize these resources for academic and clinical practice. 

For example, low to high fidelity simulation mannequins and equipment enable the nurses to practice their skills more contextualized without harming a real patient. 

When the Covid-19 pandemic struck, it further changed the mode of education. In view of the necessity to keep socially distant, yet being able to keep connected with the nursing students, various teaching applications and software were utilized.

Students were given portable tool kits for selected skills practice in their hostels. Simulation videos were shared for student reference and they were assigned scenario-based role plays in order for the nursing student to become familiar with communicating within a health industry context. 

When it came to assessment, nursing students were assessed using an online theoretical examination. With the aid of technology, lecturers, clinical instructors were able to guide and coach the students from a distance.

Diploma in Nursing

UOW Malaysia KDU Penang University College, George Town

Key highlights

  • Multiple career options and pathways
  • Comprehensive syllabus that covers a wide array of fields

Ending Remarks

Lastly, as quoted by Mr. George Couros,“Technology will never replace great teachers, but in the hands of great teachers, it’s transformational.”  We are dedicated to training and developing competent nurses that are contemporary and equipped for healthcare phase 4.0. 

At UOW Malaysia KDU, our nursing program is carefully curated to ensure all aspects of nursing are covered for the student’s benefit. We strive to expose our students to these technologies as learning is a lifelong journey and you should never let anything stop you from learning.

Special thanks to:

Ms. Lee Yoke Mei
Mr. Mohd. Zamirul Bin Mohd Dzaki
Group 21/19 Nursing students
Group 23/20 Nursing students
in the making of the video clip

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27 August 2021

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