7014CPD Contemporary Issues in Nursing Essay Assignment Sample Coventry

Introduction

Medical care systems across the globe are experiencing a tremendous revolution because of the technological changes, rise in the healthcare needs and population dynamics. The modern nursing field is facing one of the most high-profile challenges in the form of increasing the adoption of digital health technologies in healthcare delivery.

Digital health technologies encompass electronic health records (EHRs), telehealth systems and services, remote patient monitoring systems and mobile health applications that assist healthcare professionals in delivering care that is safe, efficient, and effective. The technologies have gained more significance in the accessibility of healthcare, clinical decision-making, and evidence-based nursing practice.

Digital transformation has become one of the priorities in healthcare policy within the United Kingdom. The National Health Service (NHS) has placed priority on technology-enabled healthcare in its efforts like the NHS Long Term Plan that recognizes digital innovation as a fundamental approach to enhancing healthcare quality and patient outcomes (NHS England, 2019).

Nurses are also very instrumental in the adoption of digital health technologies since they will be tasked to assess patients, facilitate care and management of clinical information in the health care setting. Consequently, the role of the digital innovation is that it has influenced the functions, skills and professional identity of the nurses remarkably.

Although digital health technologies have their positive sides, their use in modern nursing practice also presents some challenges to the modern health care. These obstacles involve, but are not limited to, the creation of digital illiteracy in healthcare workers, concerns about data privacy and confidentiality, and disparities in patient access to digital healthcare services. It is important to understand these challenges so that the effectiveness of technological innovations can be used to improve and not undermine the quality of nursing care.

The essay provides a critical analysis of the role of digital health technologies in modern nursing practice in the UK healthcare setting. It assesses how evidence of the research on digital healthcare interventions is developed and applied, it analyzes how healthcare policy affects the implementation of digital health, and it critically evaluates how social and organisational factors can affect the introduction of digital technologies into nursing practice.

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Critical Analysis of Digital Health Technologies in Nursing Practice

The digital health technologies have made a great impact on the organisation and provision of healthcare services. The electronic health record (EHR) system is one of the most popular digital innovations in healthcare that is being implemented. Electronic health records enable healthcare providers to store and retrieve the information about patients in electronic format, which will enable efficient sharing of information among healthcare teams. It has been found out that electronic health records enhance patient safety by minimizing medication errors and assisting in the process of clinical decision-making (Topaz & Pruinelli, 2017).

To the nurses, electronic health records have changed the day-to-day clinical practices. The nurse has a role in recording patient examination, treatment interventions and clinical information to other multidisciplinary healthcare teams. Digital documentation systems can facilitate and provide nurses with access to patient information with high accuracy and speed, thereby enhancing the continuity and coordination of care. Also, EHR systems can enable the distribution of information across departments and facilitate collaborative care and enhance patient outcomes.

Nonetheless, the adoption of electronic health records has also presented problems to the nursing practice despite such advantages. Researchers have reported that electronic records may lead to the nurses being overworked and spending less time with patients (McBride, Tietze, Hanley, and Thomas, 2017). Nurses state that they tend to spend much time on data input of patients into electronic systems which can lead to work-related stress and reduced job satisfaction. This underscores the importance of healthcare organisations developing digital systems that facilitate clinical processes, as opposed to developing more administrative overheads.

Telehealth and remote patient monitoring is another important technological advancement that has changed the practice of nursing. Telehealth services enable medical practitioners to provide care at a distance through video calls, mobile health apps and websites, and digital communication platforms. During the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth gained special significance because healthcare providers were required to decrease the amount of physical contact but still provide access to healthcare services.

Telehealth has been found to enhance the problem of accessibility to healthcare services among people in the rural or underserved regions. Digital devices can be used to monitor the vital signs and transmit them to the healthcare providers remotely to patients with chronic conditions to manage their conditions like diabetes or cardiovascular disease. This will enable nurses to address patient health on a continuous basis and intervene early enough in cases of complications (Sharma & Clarke, 2014). Remote monitoring is thus beneficial in ensuring that health decline is detected early and there is less chance of hospital admissions.

In the nursing context, telehealth necessitates the acquisition of novel skills connected to digital communication, data interpretation and virtual patient examination. Nurses should acquire the digital literacy to be able to handle telehealth technologies and analyze clinical data produced with the help of remote monitoring systems. Greenhalgh et al. (2018) note that the adoption of telehealth is hindered by the fact that healthcare professionals have to have the technical expertise and confidence to apply digital technologies in practice.

Nevertheless, telehealth also creates ethical issues of patient confidentiality and data security. Electronic healthcare systems hold mass amounts of patient confidential data, posing a possible danger in terms of cyber security and data insecurity. To guarantee patient confidentiality and defend on personal health information, nurses are thus supposed to comply with tight professional requirements.

The Influence of Policy and Healthcare Interventions

The healthcare policy is vital in developing and adopting the use of digital health technologies as per the nursing practice. In the United Kingdom, the national policy initiatives that have been in place have greatly assisted digital healthcare innovation in order to modernise the healthcare systems and enhance patient care.

The NHS Long Term Plan focuses on the need to become more digital in healthcare and has strategies to increase telehealth services, enhance electronic health records and the use of data to advance healthcare systems (NHS England, 2019). The policy should improve access to healthcare services by patients and also lead to increased efficiency in the NHS.

The enhancement of interdependence in healthcare services in various care environments is one of the main goals of digital healthcare policy. Nowadays, through digital technologies, healthcare professionals can exchange information about patients more efficiently between hospitals, community care providers, and primary care services. This combination strategy assists in making sure the patients get coordinated care during the process of health care delivery.

The policy initiatives are also designed to empower the patients to be more active in their health management. Patients can view medical records, track their health conditions and communicate with medical staff using digital health applications. This change to patient-centred care is in line with more general healthcare objectives of fostering patient interaction and enhancing health outcomes.

Nonetheless, there are some issues of digital healthcare policies implementation that pose a challenge to the nursing practice. The nurses are required to cope with the fast evolving healthcare technologies and keep the standards of patient care high. Professional development programmes and training therefore are needed to make sure that the nurses have the needed competencies to utilise digital technologies.

Moreover, the implementation of the policy should deal with the digital inequality problems. Although technological solutions in the healthcare sector can enhance access to health services, patients do not have equal access to the internet and digital devices. The elderly population, those with lower socioeconomic status, and those rural may experience obstacles to digital healthcare service provision. The policymakers should thus be careful that digital healthcare efforts are all-inclusive and accessible to every patient group.

Social and Organisational Influences on Nursing Practice

Digital health technologies are embedded within the healthcare systems due to the larger societal and organisational processes. Medical institutions need to modify their system, operations and professional identities to embrace technological innovation.

The digital gap is one of the significant social aspects that affect the adoption of digital healthcare and is defined as disparities in the use of digital technologies. Patients with low levels of digital literacy or access to internet services might have a problem in utilizing digital healthcare platforms. This establishes possible inequalities in access to health and health outcomes.

To nurses, dealing with digital inequality needs to be patient-centred approach towards digital healthcare execution. Nurses should make sure that the patients are provided with proper support and education in the use of digital health technologies. It can include educating the patients on the usage of mobile health apps or helping people who are new to digital devices.

The organisational culture is another great factor influencing the effectiveness of the digital health technologies implementation in the healthcare environment. The outcome of digital healthcare system integration is augurated in healthcare organisations that encourage innovation, collaboration and constant learning. The assistance of leaders and the involvement of its staff are crucial to the implementation of new technologies in healthcare professionals being confident in their use.

The digital health technologies implementation is also affected by workforce issues. Nurses may struggle to adjust to new technological systems in many healthcare systems where there is increasingly high nursing shortage and workload. Healthcare organisations should thus offer sufficient training, technical support and resources to assist nurses to adopt digital technologies in clinical practice.

Conclusion

Digital health technologies can change the modern nursing practice by facilitating the accessibility of healthcare services, contributing to patient safety and evidence-based decision-making. Electronic health record and telehealth systems are among the innovations that allow nurses to implement patient care processes more efficiently and coordinately.

Nevertheless, workload, digital literacy, ethical concerns and healthcare inequality are other areas of challenges associated with the adoption of digital technologies in nursing practice. The successful introduction of digital healthcare systems needs to be strongly supported by organisations, training healthcare professionals and policies that will ensure that social disparities in healthcare provision are tackled.

Policies like the NHS Long Term Plan have raised awareness on the issue of digital innovation in enhancing the healthcare delivery and patient outcomes. The use of these technologies and the provision of digital healthcare solutions in a patient-centred and ethically responsible manner heavily rely on the nurses.

Finally, the digital health technologies may dramatically enhance the healthcare delivery, yet the successful implementation depends on the ability to discuss the organisational, professional and social factors that impact the nursing practice nowadays.

Reference List

Greenhalgh, T., Shaw, S., Wherton, J., Hughes, G., Lynch, J., A’Court, C., & Hinder, S. (2018). Real-world implementation of video outpatient consultations at macro, meso and micro levels: Mixed-method study. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 20(4), e150.

McBride, S., Tietze, M., Hanley, M., & Thomas, L. (2017). State of the science of electronic health record system implementation in nursing practice. Computers, Informatics, Nursing, 35(8), 394-401.

NHS England. (2019). The NHS Long Term Plan. London: NHS England.

Sharma, U., & Clarke, M. (2014). Nurses’ and community support workers’ experience of telehealth: A longitudinal case study. BMC Health Services Research, 14(164).

Topaz, M., & Pruinelli, L. (2017). Big data and nursing: Implications for the future. Studies in Health Technology and Informatics, 232, 165-171.

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