The Role of Technology in Nursing and Education (Post #7)

In my opinion, technology has had an enormous impact on Nursing as a profession and on education. Working at Valley Medical Center, technology literally "litters" the floor. Computers can be found in every room as Nurses, Doctors, CNA's, etc. use them to electronically chart vital signs, medications, or simply view patient information. Just the other day I witnessed a doctor pull up a patient's X-RAY right on the computer to diagnose a bone fracture. Before, X-RAY's took minutes to process. Now, X-RAY's can be processed within seconds and loaded to computers where doctors are able to access them from anywhere in the hospital. This is excellent news especially if a patient is in a hospital room. A doctor can visit a patient, pull up their X-RAY, and explain the patient's condition. They can even magnify certain areas using the on screen toolbar! I feel that technology has greatly impacted the health care system in a very positive way. However, "with great power comes great responsibility". With this said, I believe it is the job for each and every health care worker to be responsible with the information that is contained in the systems.

In my opinion, technology in education has made learning fun and interactive. I believe technology has improved the learning process for many, creating diverse opportunities for learning. An excellent example would be the Virtual Clinical Excursions that we as students are able to use. They allow us to study real case scenarios without stepping foot in the hospital. Technology has created a new world of advantages and as students; I think it is important for us to take advantage of the technological opportunities that we have been blessed with.