From the very beginning of nursing as a formal career with standardized education programs in the late 19th century, there have been several points of rapid change thanks to new health-related technologies. What has been called the “germ revolution” and the understanding of the sources of infection was one such turning point, the introduction of antibiotics, another.
Today, as the demand for nurses skyrockets, the field itself is experiencing radical change. With the combined forces of medical advancements and information technologies, the field of nursing has experienced yet another substantive transformation, changing nursing careers forever. Here are 19 of the technologies that have contributed to this dramatic change.
- Electronic IV Monitors. There was a time when IVs had to be administered with a nurses constant attention to ensure a steady flow. Manual IVs were highly sensitive to a patients movement and the flow of the IV could be sped up or slowed to a crawl by a subtle movement. To prevent this, nurses had to directly administer an IV from beginning to start. With the advent of IV pump infusion and electronic monitoring, nurses are freed up to initiate an IV and allow a machine to monitor and regulate the process. If there is an error, the system tries to correct it, and otherwise contacts the nurse via remote monitoring.
- The Sphygmomanometer. The sphygomomanometer is simply a fancy term for electronic blood pressure cuffs that also measure heart beat rate: automatically. Gone are the days when a nurse had to measure blood pressure manually. According to one nurse, this is the technological change that makes the biggest daily difference.
- Information management. As computer technologies become the primary means of managing patient information, nurses have had to adapt their record-keeping practices and increase their computer skills. Nursing informatics is a specialty that has emerged, combining IT skills and nursing science.
- The Portable Defibrillator . Manual CPR can only do so much and for the longest time this was the only method available to many nurses for reviving someone’s heart. Now, even school nurses stand a fighting chance to save the life of a person who’s heart has failed. The few minutes after heart failure are critical, and the portable defibrillator allows for immediate resuscitative action.
- Sturdy, portable IT devices. Tablet computers and mobile wireless computer stations are now a standard part of the day-to-day methods of delivering care to patients, with paper and pen charting becoming rapidly a thing of the past. Charts are updated continuously, in real time, providing nurses with immediate access to essential patient information.
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