The use of electronic devices for communication with colleagues and other healthcare professionals – nursing professionals’ perspectives

Abstract

According to our findings, despite the obstacles related to use of information technology, the use of electronic devices to support communication among healthcare professionals appears to be useful.

Subjective cognitive complaints, psychosocial factors and nursing work function in nurses providing direct patient care

“…Nurses are encouraged and often required to use communication tools such as Situation‐Background‐Assessment‐Recommendation (SBAR) to transmit and receive shift report and communicate with the interdisciplinary team (Cornell, Gervis, Yates, & Vardaman, ; Haig, Sutton, & Whittington, ). Additional aids such as checklists and electronic applications help organize tasks, increase nurse workflow and improve patient outcomes (Howie & McMullen, ; Koivunen, Niemi, & Hupli, ; Leape, Berwick, & Bates, ). Nursing supervisors wanting to assist staff may encourage nurses to use aids that evidence supports are most effective.…”

A Study of the Impact of an Educational Intervention on Nurse Attitudes and Behaviours toward Mobile Device Use in Hospital Settings

“…There is a growing body of research on the incorporation of mobile devices in nursing practice as a communication tool and as a means of supporting evidence-based practice by providing access to information resources, practice guidelines, and drug information [10][11][12][13][14]. Doran (2010) investigated the impact of mobile devices on nurses' access to research evidence in Ontario, Canada, and reported that the most frequently used resources accessed by nurses included drug dictionaries and medical reference sources [11].…”

“…Additional concerns by nurses included patient privacy, lack of comfort with the technology, infection control, cost, and lack of wireless connectivity [1,[10][11][12]. These obstacles should not be considered insurmountable given the potential mobile apps have for enhancing patient care.…”

Can Wireless Devices Improve Communication?

“…Implementing mobile devices to improve patient care was explored in a study that found “the use of mobile telephones decreases the time required to relay an important message and thus may reduce the risk of committing an error in patient care.” 3(p540) However, mobile telephone use can face a variety of obstacles, including the building itself. Cellular telephones may not work well in large buildings, 5 and one study found that nursing professionals expressed concern with dropped text messages, privacy, and the wait time for a response 6 . The study found some advantages to using mobile telephones, but still found communication difficulties after their implementation.…”

“…Koivunen et al found that “the use of electronic devices for communication with colleagues made their working time more effective.” 6(p626) Additionally, they found employees had increased flexibility because of “enabled time‐ and place‐independent communication,” 6(p626) which enables the employee to be helped without either person moving from their location 6 . According to another study on wireless communication devices, health care team members said the technology provided benefits such as being able to communicate directly with other nurses when necessary, efficiency in calling for help and simultaneously requesting items to bring along, improved patient care because of limited interruptions, and ease of answering questions from other team members without leaving their own patients 5 .…”