Guest Blogger: Jenna
Healthcare is one of the most important sectors of our economy. In nearly all geographical regions, the healthcare industry employs more people than any other industry.
Likewise, when it comes to technology, the healthcare industry is at the head of the class. Medical technology helps in many different ways, from CAT scans, ultrasounds and MRIs that diagnose problems inside the body or monitor an infant before it is born, to the computers that keep our information and data organized.
This technology allows patients and medical professionals easier access in almost every possible way. Improving healthcare has become a global focus. Information technology is on the forefront of that cause, sharing data from country to country and city to city to keep our citizens safe from disease and epidemics.
Electronic medical records software is imperative for doctors and nurses to store our records and monitor our progress. Without this software, we would still have to deal with lost or misplaced files that could mean a serious loss of time and test results.
Today when you go to the doctor, you rarely ever see a paper file. There are laptops in every room, or the nurses carry iPads or other tablet devices to keep track of all patient’s records and results. The new software and technology helps to cut down on time spent inputting data. It always helps clinicians in recalling data later and helps to ensure that protected health information (PHI) is used in a meaningful way. This allows them to complete their jobs quicker and allow for the doctors to see more patients.
Considering the rapidly growing population, it is imperative that time saving technologies be learned and used as efficiently as possible. Believe it or not, this also saves the environment as well, since healthcare professionals only print out what is absolutely necessary to give to you, thereby saving trees from being cut down unnecessarily.
As new technology is invented and implemented, sometimes we get to try new things. The new Google Glass is one such technology that looks to be very promising. This augmented reality application could help nurses and doctors to get information the very second it is uploaded and available. This would save valuable time for nurses everywhere who are struggling with an increasingly sicker patient population.
For instance, if a doctor in a emergency room or operation room is in need of certain test results and has the Google Glass, he/she can immediately access the results the minute the they are available. This could help to save a person’s life, especially in an ER, where finding out a person’s blood type before giving them blood is a matter of life or death.
Not all areas of the medical fields are thrilled with the new gadgets that come out. They can be very resistant to “change”, especially in the older generations, but time has already proven that the more we go forward, the better off mankind is as a whole. And in foreword-thinking healthcare organizations, healthcare professionals who don’t get with the program and adapt to the change are quickly replaced.
The old adage that it is hard to teach on old dog new tricks simply doesn’t apply any longer. In a world of new and rapidly growing technology, it is a keep up mentality. While this may make it necessary for continuing education, the advantages are clear.
