Please be sure to answer the questions that are underlined!!!

APA format, approximately 400 words, just make sure underlined questions are answered, references less than 5 years old, at least 3 references.

Discussion: Current Information and Communication Technologies

With so much attention focused on health care reform, it is important that nurses be given the opportunity to use high-quality technology tools. These tools can increase access to vital medical information, promote effective communication among health care professionals, and improve the patient experience. By actively seeking out and adopting these tools, nurses can greatly enhance the quality and safety of care that they provide.

This Discussion focuses on identifying quality technology tools that increase the ability of nurses to provide safe, effective care.

To prepare:

Review the various technology tools described in this week’s Learning Resources.
Identify a recently adopted information, education, or communication technology tool in your specialty area. Reflect on how it is used and how its use impacts the quality of care.
Consider how your identified technology tool might impact nursing practice if it were more widely used. What are some barriers preventing increased usage? How could wider implementation be facilitated?

BY DAY 3

Post a description of a current or new information, education, or communication technology tool that is being used in your specialty area and assess its impact on the quality of care. Highlight the effect that increased use of this technology would have on nursing practice and discuss the barriers that are slowing or hindering its adoption. Summarize how adoption of the technology tool could be facilitated.

Week 4: Health Care Technologies

Did you know that it is now possible to use a USB-based ultrasound probe with smartphone technology? This technology provides critical patient information to physicians practicing in remote areas of the globe. Did you also know that there are now contact lenses that monitor blood sugar levels of diabetics? These lenses are manufactured with special components that react to changes in glucose levels in the tear ducts, causing the eyes to change colors and helping diabetics monitor blood levels without drawing blood. New advances in health care technologies can range from simple time-saving devices to complex lifesaving tools.

Consider your own use of technology. Would you use a mercury thermometer to check a patient’s temperature if a digital one were available? Technological innovation transforms nursing practice by providing nurses with more opportunities to improve patient care. With new technology being constantly introduced, it is increasingly important for nurses to keep up to date with technological trends.

This week, you focus on advances in health information technologies. You examine a technology in your specialty area and consider how it has impacted the quality of patient care. In addition, you appraise the barriers and facilitators of implementing the information technology tool in your specialty area.

Learning Objectives

Students will:

Evaluate the effectiveness of a technology tool in your specialty area

Appraise the barriers and facilitators of implementing an information technology tool in your specialty area