The world of technology tomorrow will be wireless with virtual connections to the Internet. Information technology will, according to the President’s Information Technology Advisory Committee, ‘be one of the key factors driving progress in the 21st century — It will transform how we live, learn, work, and play’. People will live longer, be better educated and enjoy improved personal health. (Saba & Saba 2001) Nursing will change from ‘electronic care’ (e-care) to ‘mobile care’ (m-care) using wireless technology tools that are nurse-friendly and compatible with nursing-care applications.
(Saba & Saba 2001) Nurses will be able to communicate without being hard-wired linked and will be able to walk around with hand-held computers that will be linked to desktop computers via wireless communication, like the mobile telephones that people carry in their pockets. (Saba & Saba 2001) Health care organizations will continue to invest heavily in clinical information systems to help improve patient safety, reduce variability of care, and increase the efficiency of their staff.
(Meadows 2002) These clinical information systems can assist in reducing medication errors through sophisticated medication management solutions and provide clinical decision support lo aid in the decision making of all clinicians. They can also help offset the effects of a growing worker shortage, especially hard-felt in nursing, by reducing redundant tasks, improving communication, and streamlining clinical data collection. As those clinical systems arc implemented, there is an increased need for information management of all of this complex data. (Meadows 2002)
The challenge to nursing is how and what can be done to advance nursing informatics in the 21st century. Nursing professionals must ensure that computer technology remains an integral part of professional nursing practice. They will have to utilize virtual reality technology to provide realworld models for teaching the ‘art and science of nursing’. They will have to utilize the Internet and WWW resources to expand nursing practice, teach students, link patients and educate consumers. As technology advances, so will nursing. (Saba & Saba 2001)
References
Abrahamsen, Cathie, (2003) Patient safety: Take the informatics challenge, Nursing Management, 07446314, Apr2003, Vol. 34, Issue 4 Courtney, Karen L. , Demiris, George, Alexander, Greg L. (2005) Information Technology Changing Nursing Processes at the Point-of-Care. Nursing Administration Quarterly/October-December 2005 Meadows, Ginny, (2002) Nursing Informatics: An Evolving Specialty. NURSING ECONOMtCS/November-December 2002A/oL 20/No, 6 Naisbitt, B. (1982) Megatrends: Ten New Directions Transforming Our Lives. Harcourt Brace & World, Inc. , New York.