The Impact of Innovative Technology: Healthcare Issues and Trends

This report examines the integration of innovative technology within the healthcare sector, specifically focusing on its application in the intensive care unit (ICU). It highlights the benefits of technologies such as E-glass for patient privacy, smart infusion pumps for medication safety, and pneumatic tube systems for efficient sample transport. The analysis emphasizes how these advancements contribute to improved patient care and the reduction of errors, thereby enhancing the efficiency of nurses and the overall quality of healthcare delivery. The report also discusses the importance of monitoring devices in the ICU for patient safety and the impact of information integration to increase nurses' situation awareness and decrease the risk of errors. Overall, the report concludes that technology has significantly transformed healthcare, benefiting both patients and healthcare providers.

Running head: ISSUES AND TRENDS 1
Issues and Trends
Student’s Name
Institution Affiliation

ISSUES AND TRENDS 2
Issues and Trends
Innovative technology is a crucial aspect of the present modern applications and
interaction in different areas. The healthcare area has utilized this opportunity by using these
applications to make health care service delivery better and efficient (Thimbleby, 2013). In the
video provided, there are several aspects which have been used in the intensive care unit in
running the healthcare department including the management of the patient’s welfare. From the
video, it is clear that technology has brought various changes as compared to how healthcare
used to operate. Therefore, I am in support of the current technology as it is beneficial to both
the nurses and the patients. Moreover, the nurses are able to progress well while carrying out
their tasks and the patients on the other hand are able to receive the best care.
One of the benefits is associated with privacy brought about by the use of E- glass. The
E-glass is a switchable electric glass used to separate one patient from the other. The E-glass is
easily adjusted from clear to opaque so as to guarantee a better level and increased level of the
patient’s privacy while they are being examined or cleaned. Creating the necessary level of
patient privacy is vital if the nurses want to maximize the satisfaction and comfort of their
patients (Pickering, Litell, Herasevich, Gajic, 2012)). The E- glass offers an unrivalled level of
privacy while compared to curtains and blinds which can absolutely be interrupted. If a nurse
needs privacy while carrying out a procedure, they only press or touch a button and the E-glass
changes the color and the person next or near cannot see what is going on. Additionally, E- glass
has promoted hygiene in the healthcare department as it is simple to clean creating a much
cleaner environment for the patients and the nurses.
The use of smart infusion pumps as mentioned in the video is also beneficial to the
healthcare sector. The platform involves medication delivery devices which use a combination of
drug libraries and computer technology at accurately controlled rates to lower or limit the

ISSUES AND TRENDS 3
probable for dosing errors (Keohane, Hayes, Saniuk , Rothschild , Bates, 2005)).The nurses are
able avoid committing errors hence are able to improve patient safety and to also build high
reliability to the hospital. In addition, infusion pumps offer essential benefits over manual
administration of fluids including the capability to supply fluids in very small volumes, and the
capability to supply fluids at accurately automated intervals or programmed rates.
The usage of pneumatic tube system has mostly been used as a method of transport in
hospitals (Koçak, Yöntem, Yücel, Cilo, Genç, Meral, 2013) It is beneficial to the nurses and
patients as it reduces delays of patients’ samples delivered to the laboratory. It is considered as
most effective due to its high speed and effectual use by the nurses. In addition, pneumatic tube
systems are considered when long distances are to be covered especially when there is no much
time or when the samples require urgent delivery.
Fatal errors can occur in intensive care units (Koch, Weir, Haar, Staggers, Agutter,
Görges, Westenskow, 2012). In the video, Neil A Halpern states that Patients in ICU are mostly
at risk of errors due to the complication and severity of their health conditions. Info integration at
the bedside can increase nurses’ situation awareness of their patients hence decreasing errors
(Williams, & Thornton, 2016). This is an advantage to the nurses who are often involved in more
than one task at a time and who work under significant cognitive, perceptual and physical
overload. Consequently, it eases their workload hence minimizing the risks of errors.
Unanticipated occurrences are common in intensive care medicine (Bhutkar &
Deshmukh, 2015). Patients in intensive care are regularly examined using modern monitoring
devices to track their situation and conditions to alert nurses to changes. The monitoring is
crucial to the patients as the optimization of patient’s temperature, hemodynamic, ventilation,
nutrition and metabolism is the key to increase patient’s mortality. Moreover, monitoring shows
the level of compliance with an articulated standard of care or the degree of deviation from the

ISSUES AND TRENDS 4
projected standard of care. The bedside monitors are really useful in fast identifying changes and
complications in the patient’s situation. These monitors are capable of detecting various different
vital signs, displaying them on the screen and also sounding the alarm so as to inform the nurses
if something is not right.
In conclusion, from the clip, it is clear that technology has brought about many changes
to the healthcare sector. The existing technology is beneficial to both the nurses and the patients.
It has enabled the nurses to carry out their duties efficiently and the patients are well taken care
of (The ICU at the 2014 Intelligent Hospital, Pavilion Video, 2014).

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References
Bhutkar, Ganesh & Deshmukh, Shahaji. (2015). Vital Medical Devices in Intensive Care Unit.
10.13140/RG.2.1.4671.6247.
Intelligent Hospital Pavilion ICU video. (2014) retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=V42yuH4xmyQ&feature=youtu.be
Keohane CA, Hayes J, Saniuk C, Rothschild JM, Bates, DW. (2005) Intravenous medication
safety and smart infusion systems: Lessons learned and future opportunities. J Infus
Nurs.;28(5):321–328.
Koçak, F. E., Yöntem, M., Yücel, O., Cilo, M., Genç, O., & Meral, A. (2013). The effects of
transport by pneumatic tube system on blood cell count, erythrocyte sedimentation and
coagulation tests. Biochemia medica, 23(2), 206–210. doi:10.11613/BM.2013.024
Koch, S. H., Weir, C., Haar, M., Staggers, N., Agutter, J., Görges, M., & Westenskow, D.
(2012). Intensive care unit nurses' information needs and recommendations for integrated
displays to improve nurses' situation awareness. Journal of the American Medical
Informatics Association : JAMIA, 19(4), 583–590. doi:10.1136/amiajnl-2011-000678
Pickering, B. W., Litell, J. M., Herasevich, V., & Gajic, O. (2012). Clinical review: the hospital
of the future - building intelligent environments to facilitate safe and effective acute care
delivery. Critical care (London, England), 16(2), 220. doi:10.1186/cc11142
Thimbleby H. (2013). Technology and the future of healthcare. Journal of public health
research, 2(3), e28. doi:10.4081/jphr.2013.e28
Williams, D. E., & Thornton, J. W., 3rd (2016). Flipping the Physical Examination: Web-Based
Instruction and Live Assessment of Bedside Technique. The Ochsner journal, 16(1), 70–
72.

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