Technology Archives - Page 17 of 21

Some Fun Friday Food for Thought

By Shawn Kennedy, AJN editor-in-chief

With rain and gray clouds clinging to the East coast, this week seemed especially long. Commuting into New York City took much longer than usual, but on a positive note, there was more time to listen to the radio or read the paper. This week, some of us at AJN came across some interesting stories. They got us through ‘til Friday, so we’re sharing them—they’re too good to keep to ourselves.

One staffer’s reading turned up this piece: the Ford Motor Company is developing in-vehicle monitoring of diabetes and allergies. According to the article, it’s “aimed at helping people with chronic illnesses or medical disorders such as diabetes, asthma or allergies manage their condition while on the go.” Meaning, while driving?
As we were having a laugh about what this scenario might look like in reality, one editor spoke of a friend who, while driving herself to the hospital in labor, was using an iPhone app to monitor contractions. I wonder if there’ll be new laws against using health apps while driving…
My favorite story has nothing to do with nursing, but I can’t resist sharing it. Time.com ran a story about the possible end of the world, which some people think will happen Saturday. What’s startling is that some companies are already cashing in. One company called Eternal Earth-Bound Pets has the answer for those worried about pets left behind: its representatives are confirmed atheists—they’ll take care of the pets.

I’m not sure who said it, […]

Amy M. Collins, managing editor2016-11-21T13:12:56-05:00May 20th, 2011|healthcare social media|1 Comment

Nurses, Hospitals, and Social Media: It Depends What Business You’re In

Hospitals with social media policies are not necessarily squelching their employees' right to freedom of speech. They don't want to spend time and money in court defending their public image. They already spend lots of money on marketing. They are in the business of patient care, not entertainment. So hospitals with social media polices take the position that you can post or tweet to your heart's content, but should keep in mind the following:

Julianna Paradisi, RN, OCN2016-11-21T13:14:17-05:00January 19th, 2011|career, healthcare social media, Nursing, Patients|2 Comments

Placenta Facebook Photos: Nurse and Mommy Tribes See Student Expulsion Differently

Will patients trust that when they are anesthetized they will be treated respectfully? Will hospitals and other clinical agencies be less inclined to host students for fear of litigation over privacy? I imagine at the very least, all nursing schools are now quickly developing social media policies. The American Medical Association has one and the American Nurses Association is, I’m told, developing one.

Shawn Kennedy, MA, RN, FAAN, editor-in-chief (emerita)2016-11-21T13:14:21-05:00January 12th, 2011|career, Ethics, healthcare social media, nursing perspective, students|14 Comments

Buyer Beware: Most Online Nursing Schools are Reputable, But How Do You Know?

In the January issue of the AJN, we assigned one of our freelance journalists to do a report examining for-profit nursing programs, many of which are online.

Shawn Kennedy, MA, RN, FAAN, editor-in-chief (emerita)2016-11-21T13:14:28-05:00January 3rd, 2011|digital health, students|2 Comments

AJN Webnotes: Anatomizing Medical Errors; Insurance Rebates; Social Media and Nurses

The most popular article in last week’s New England Journal of Medicine did not tout the discovery of a novel gene, nor describe a cardiology clinical trial with a clever acronym as its title. Rather, it was the report of a case in which a surgeon at the Massachusetts General Hospital performed the wrong operation on a 65-year-old woman.

So begins a nicely engaging summary post at The Health Care Blog of the main points of an NEJM article describing how a medical error occurred—and yes, nurses play a major role in the story too.

Feel like your insurance company spends too much time trying to weasel you out of your money? Kaiser Health News reports today that the Affordable Care Act may soon result in a little payback, in the form of rebates:

Millions of Americans might be eligible for rebates starting in 2012 under regulations released Monday detailing the health care law’s requirement that insurers spend at least 80 percent of their revenue on direct medical care.

“I have nothing listed under my work experience, yet Facebook somehow knows where I work,” cries Not Nurse Ratched, in a post called “Latest Facebook creepiness rant.” Such surprises are worth considering for anyone who might forget that information has a life of its own on the Web. Speaking of social media and nurses, A Nurse Practitioner’s View gives a quick survey of social media networking platforms […]