The Impact of Emerging Technology on Nursing Care - Essay Example

The Impact of Emerging Technology on Nursing Care The impact of emerging technology on nursing practice There is an increasing demand of medical technology among nursing practitioners in the United States and other hospitals globally. The continued increase in healthcare needs and complexity has also attributed to the emergence of sophisticated technology in such hospitals. According to Australian annual medical report published in 2012, there has been a huge development in technological work in relation to the nursing practices (Rice, 2006). Despite presence of some obstacles in nursing practice, there is a lot of technological impact attributing to significant restoration of life both in Europe and in the United States that has improved healthcare demands satisfactorily. Some medical centers in Australian have reported the emergence of new technology as a powerful influence that has completely transformed the face of healthcare industry. However, it is still critical to determine the impact emerging technology on nursing care. Research problem Among the most serious problems that affect the nursing industry is unprecedented and continued deficiency of medical information infrastructure in hospital institutions. It has been pointed out that such shortage does not only affect patients directly through premature loss of life, but lack of proper medical information system also increases costs associated with hiring expatriates to assist in taking care of patients with chronic conditions. Moreover, there is misuse of resources among specialists who are contracted on a temporary basis, and such discovery has also pointed out low-quality services received by patients where simple use of technology could have been used (Rice, 2006). It is proposed that continued emergence of new technology will attribute to proper medical care in the near future. Therefore, it is advisable for both local and international governments and the nursing council to consider adequate measures by embracing new technology for proper sustainability of patients’ lives. With reference to different calls by healthcare fraternity to adopt adequate use of information systems, a lot has been done to sort the mess. In fact, some technology such as digital imaging system and monographs have been incorporated in the nursing fraternity internally where the importance is quite clear, and so many lives have been saved (AACN, 2010). Research design According to Bonnel & Smith (2010), the complexity and flexibility of the above research is based on a simple planning structure. Therefore, it is necessary to note that the research requires minimal planning since it is quite easy to access healthcare facilities and physically and possibly determine the kind of technological systems that are available within a particular hospital. However, it is positive to note that researcher may not get the exact information required on the research directly from such institutions because every institution is governed by different policies. Besides, not all management are willing to give relevant information since it may be detrimental or sabotage the quality of nursing practice in healthcare institutions (Ball & Hannah, 2011). However, a simple plan must be drawn by the researchers to help in addressing the procedure of conducting the whole research process, research guidelines and ethical considerations that govern the research process from the beginning to the end. Planning will also encompass a structure for handling sudden circumstances that may interfere with the progress of the research. Rationale of the research With respect to the emergence of a technological system across healthcare institutions, the research identifies that healthcare service provision has been enhanced as a result of healthcare systems and service healthcare management board that helps to determine problems and solutions affecting hospitals other than the mandate of the government and healthcare officials. More technological aspect should be identified to cover different areas of specialty that meet the demand of patients in various healthcare institutions. Besides, the research discovers that most of the medical institutions use their specific method to keep relevant information concerning the patients and nursing practitioners. The above makes it difficult to determine areas where there may be a need for an alternative electronic system to eliminate redundancy in tracing patient’s medical records. For proper development and effective execution of the research, a proper guideline and a body should be instituted to control technological department and produce reports concerning hospitals where there is a need for consideration concerning healthcare givers. In addition, such a body is also necessary because given principle powers will ensure important agreements between hospital fraternity and other bodies to help in fulfilling the need for proper medical systems in various hospitals (Ball & Hannah, 2011). Research questions The most suitable research question that has been developed for the above study is “What are the application areas of technology in nursing care?” Overview of the conceptual framework From a report conducted by international medical practitioners and physicians in Australia and the United States indicates, there are various kinds of technologies that are of considerable impact to healthcare and nursing industry. The research paper has pointed different kinds of technology that play critical roles in nursing care and healthcare sustainability of nursing practices across the world (Huston, 2013). Some of the technological infrastructure that has transformed healthcare services includes Genetics and genomics systems that practitioners embrace to correct disorders associated with genetics and the surrounding of nursing care practices. Besides, there is a development in diagnosis and treatment machines that reduce time spent in determining chances of specific diseases and at an affordable cost of treatment. Nursing practices has transversely borrowed the use of digital imaging and the use of three-dimensional printing that uses bio ink to construct virtual cells that can be used to aid replacement of human organs virtually. More importantly, nursing practices has incorporated the use of an electronic record keeping that helps in safe retrieval and storage of medical data from multiple users across different departments within the healthcare institution. The above research was carried out purposely to determine the level of development of information technology infrastructure in healthcare industry and how such developments play a critical role in servicing healthcare needs of patients and the nursing fraternity. Ultimately, the data collected was mainly sourced from hospitals and thus treated as valid as per the submission of the report (Huston, 2013). References: Huston, C., (May 31, 2013) "The Impact of Emerging Technology on Nursing Care: Warp Speed Ahead" OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing Vol. 18, No. 2 Rice, R. (2006). Home care nursing practice: concepts and application. St. Louis, MO; London: Mosby Elsevier. Bonnel, W & Smith, V. (2010). Teaching technologies in nursing and the health professions: beyond simulation and online courses. New York: Springer Pub. Ball, M & Hannah, K. (2011). Nursing informatics: where technology and caring meet. London; New York American Association of Colleges of Nursing, (2010). The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. Retrieved on 8th August 8, 2014 from: http://www.aacn.nche.edu/government-affairs/IOMFactSheet.pdf Read More