open post #9- Medical Technology

Another medical technology that I discovered while doing research for my remix project is the Mela- Find device that was just recently FDA approved and is now being implemented in Hospitals. This device is a scanner that looks at cancerous moles and protrusions in the skin to see of they are positive for melanoma. This is extremely helpful because before this device someone would have to go through a biopsy in order to test the moles for cancer and that can be expensive and leave behind nasty scars. The mela-find saves people money and unnecessary surgery by looking at the cancerous area and comparing it to over 10,000 pictures of other cancerous moles to see if the one in question is in fact cancerous. This device was created by MELA Sciences and is not meant for definitive diagnoses but can drastically cut down the amount of unnecessary biopsys. Melanoma is a really dangerous form of cancer and i think this device is pretty revolutionary. Medical technology is advancing at a rapid rate and bettering the quality of life for everyone

Prompted post #9- Diversity in Nursing

I came across an article that explains the importance of diversity in the Nursing field. Nursing is a growing field becasue without nurses a hospital cannot run properly. Doctors are an important part of hospital care but the nurses are the ones that are constantly dealing with patients are communicating with them on a more personal level. This brings up the point that hospitals are trying to diversify their nursing staff in order to relate to the patient demographics. It has been proven that people would rather be treated by someone that they can relate with because it makes them feel more safe and secure in a hospital setting. According to Veronica Vital Ph-D, Rn at the Chamberlain college of NUrsing in Arizono "It is projected that by 2050 minorities will make up 50 percent of the population in America therefor diversifying the the demographic of the nursing profession so nurses can mirror the face of the community we serve." I believe that this makes perfect sense because as i stated before people want to be treated by someone they can relate to and that means the nursing profession needs to be diversifies to fit anyone that comes into a hospital. It is also proven that people that are of the minority classes are more willing to work in areas with a minority population which means those under-represented minorities will get the help that they need and will not be shorted on medical care.

Studies show that it is pretty hard to diversify the career though based on the amount of people that enroll in nursing programs and just the fact that in the past minorities have not been nursing so trying to start that change is a work in progress. Having minorities represented in the Nursing field will lead to better relationships being built with patients and also overall trust that the patients have going up. Another thing that people are trying to put into the nursing field is the amount of rich people becoming nurses compared to middle class and poor people. Diversity is not only different minorities but also different social classes as well. Since some medical schools and nursing schools are expensive to go to many upper class people end up becoming nurses, but many universities are setting up scholarships for people attempting to become nurses from lower income areas. They want to have a diverse nursing population so patients that are apart of that social class will be able to relate better with the providers. I agree with this because usually one is more apt to relate to someone that knows what they are going through and has been in the same fiscal situation as you.

I think that diversity in Nursing is Important for all of these reasons stated and it is also stated in the article that the nursing field is looking for more males because it is mostly a female occupation. They believe that this will be good for people that are more comfortable being treated by someone of the same gender as them. And because i worked in a hospital for awhile I saw this to be true, some peoploe actually request to have a male nurse instead of a female and vice versa. I think that the diversity in nursing is getting better and will continue to improve as time goes on. Nurses are avery important part of the medical practice and without them things just wouldn't work in hospitals. 

Open post #8-Exosuit

While doing research for my remix project i came across a lot of really awesome medical technology. One that i found to be really awesome was an exosuit that NASA is producing. It is still in its initial stages of development but it has the potential to be revolutionary. It is a full body exo skeleton that has the functionality of a human body. They are trying to make it so people that have disabilities with can use it to give motion to body parts that no longer work properly. It has the capability to hold its shape so that someone that cannot walk would be able to stand up straight and mve around freely with help from the exosuit.


Another reason this suit is being produced is to help astronauts stay healthier in space. Since being out of the atmosphere means there is no gravity it is possible for astronauts that spend long periods of time in space to loose bone mass and become unhealthy. The suit makes it possible for them to exercise by just walking around since the suit can provide resistance that gravity normally would. Since this is still being made it is a work in progress but is expected to be done soon. Its main purpose will be to help astronauts maintain a healthy amount of exercise for trips to far away astroids and even Mars. I'm excited to see what NASA comes up with for the finished product. 

Prompted Post #8- Experience in Nursing

As I have already mentioned frequently I worked at St. Johns Providence for about 7 months last year, and had a good amount of on the job training. What I found was that working in a Hospital is all about professionalism and respect for the patients. You always want to make them feel welcome and safe because nobody liked being in a hospital and all they want is to get in and get out. I worked in occupational Health so i was not seeing all the urgent care patients that had gunshot wounds and stab wounds, and other crazy types of injuries, but I have seen a good amount of cut off fingers and stitch wounds. I have seen a man that lost 3 of his fingers due to a meat slicer at work, we had to clean out the ends of his fingers and i have never seen someone in so much pain ever. We had him dip his fingers into a cleaning solution for 10 minutes and he was whimpering and screaming the whole time becasue all the nerves and the bone of his fingers were exposed to the solution.

Hands on training is way better that any type of textbooks or classes. When you are working on the job you can see what is actually happening in a hospital not just reading through a textbook and memorizing terms and things like that. There is a huge difference between sitting in a lecture hall and listening to someone talk about how to act in a hospital and actually being in a hospital and having to compose yourself to the norms of the workplace because you are actually there. IN any situation I would choose to have hands on training rather than sitting in a lecture or reading through a textbook, i do not think those techniques are nearly as effective.

Having these hands on experiences made it possible for me to see how to truly act in a hospital and what the language and attitude of nurses and doctors really is. Sure someone can tell you what to do and how to act but it makes it so much more real to actually be living it and helping the RN's with their rounds and seeing what kind of people truly come trhough the door to be treated. Also there is an amount of getting used to seeing things that might gross people out, like I mentioned earlier I could see this mans metacarpals sticking out of his skin, which is a lot different than looking at a picture of bones in an anatomy textbook. On the site training is so much more effective in teaching people what to expect in their field than any lecture could ever be and I highly suggest doing internships and volunteering before you enter any field because that is the only way to truly know what you are getting into.
                                                           

Open Post #7- Past Experience

I recall one time when I was working at St Johns Providence when a certain patient came in that had a very interesting case. He had this abnormal bump on his elbow and it was soft to the touch but you could feel something inside of it, almost like little peices are cartiladge moving around. The nurse that I was working with and I both put gloved on and felt the protrusion that engulfed this mans entire elbow, it was about the size of a baseball, maybe even a little larger than that. I had no idea what the bump could possibly be and niether did the RN I was working with, we were both at a total loss. We asked the man how long it had been there and he Explained that it had been growing in size for about a week and that it got large enough for him to be worried so he wanted to come in and get it checked out. Since me and the RN both did not know what the soft protrusion was we brought in the Physician Assistant to check out the situation. He was also very confused by what the protrusion was and sent the man down to radiology to get some x-rays taken so that it could be further examined. 

When the x- rays came back the doctor was still at a loss because the protrusions was shown on the x-ray to be hollow but one could feel something inside of his elbow. The PA expressed his opinion to drain the protrusion, but also that he was worried that this might not be the right course of action. The man throughout all of this confusion was very brave and did not seem worried at all, which I found admirable because I personally would have been freaking out the whole time if this were to be happening to me. The PA then said before we drain the protrusion I want a specialist to come and take a look at this so we can take the proper course of action. And unfortunately that was the last I saw of this particular patient. He was shipped out to another hospital and i never heard what became of the protrusion. This experience made me realize that sometimes even the doctors have no idea what the problem is and every once and a while their are extenuating circumstances where all you can do is refer the patient somewhere else.  I just hope that he was ultimately okay and that he was able to get rid of that nasty bump on his elbow.  

Prompted post #7 Controversy over cameras

In Illinois there is a controversy regarding putting cameras in residents of nursing homes rooms, so that they can be constantly monitored to see if anything goes wrong, and if it does they can know exactly what happened. People that are in the nursing homes are fighting for this because they believe that they are abused and neglected by workers at the nursing home. There have been over 60,000 allegations blaming staff of abusing or neglecting residents, so people want to take steps to stop this from happening. By putting cameras in the residents rooms it will stop this abuse because they will constantly be under surveillance . But according to Greg Crist, the senior vice president of public affairs for the American Health Care Association "We are infringing on someones privacy, arguably for their own good, we have to make sure its justified." (Bergal n.p) Another issue regarding this is the owners of the nursing homes are worried that employees will leave because they are being constantly scrutinized in the workplace and will not like being on camera at all times.

Many people believe that having electronic surveillance in the rooms is a huge privacy violation, especially if they are hidden cameras. People want to still be able to enjoy their privacy, but with all the complaints about neglect and abuse in assisted living centers, others are seriously trying to push the issue through legislation. Legislation has failed in many states already, but people continue to push the issue. Some believe that with consent a patient should have the right to decide whether or not to have the equipment installed in the room, but they have to take into account those that cannot consent for themselves. This means that family members would have to consent for them and that could be shaky because consent is a tricky subject. Others have suggested instead of using video cameras to just use audio equipment, but this would be less reliable in stopping abuse in the nursing homes. About 1.5 million people reside in over 16,000 nursing homes in America so the issue of paying for all the cameras also comes up. According to Crist, "The cameras should not be the end all be all for ensuring quality care" (Bergal n.p) . IN Texas they passed these laws with the requirments that the resident pay for the camera and that a sign be posted saying that electronic surveillance is being used.

I dont know if putting cameras in peoples rooms is going to stop the neglect and abuse but it is a controversy that is still being discussed and no permanent outcome has been found. http://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/blogs/stateline/2014/09/25/nursing-home-cameras-create-controversyyet.

Open post #6: Catching errors

A study was done at 36 hospitals in Georgia and Colorado to see how many medical errors were made by workers. In the study they used three different detectors to catch errors that were made, they are incident report review, chart review and direct observation. They evaluated each dose that was given and looked at the prescriber's order, and any deviations from the original order were to be marked errors. They observed the efficiency of each hospital by looking at how long it took to analyze each dose of medicine and make sure it was administered correctly. They also looked at how clinically significant the error was, and a panel of physician did this. When the results of the test came in, 300 of 457 pharmacists described errors being made on 2556 doses. That is about 11% errors. I found this too be really appalling because there is no way that it they should be making this many mistakes. They are doctors, that trained for a long time to do their job so I personally don't know how there would be this many mistakes being made. This makes me think that if I got a prescription for something that its likely that i'm not going to get what i was actually prescribed. I want to have faith in the medical field but studies like this one make me not want to go to a hospital. This is why i'm going to be a nurse so that I can make sure that mistakes are not happening and that everyone gets what they are actually prescribed, without any mistakes or mix ups. Each mistake made costs the hospital money and respect so i hope that this number goes down in the future because i was amazed that it was as high as it is.

This is the article for prompted post 6; http://www.nursingtimes.net/the-arguments-around-nurse-training-are-getting-louder-as-we-get-poorer/5015654.article

Prompted post #6: Nurse Training

In an article I found online, a Professor named Mark Radcliffe, is making an argument about training nurses. He is talking about how he is a teacher that is trying to prepare nursing students to be reliable in the workplace, but he is saying that hes not sure how much good he is actually doing. He believes that the way that nurses are trained should be changed. He wants the training to move away from writing essays and taking exams, to teaching people how to implement nursing practices in live situations. He believes that it would be more beneficial to teach students in a hands on way.

He is also saying that their is a problem with the content that goes into training. He agrees that nurses should get degrees  but he disagrees with the track they have to take. He is says that the more money we loose the louder the arguments about nurse training gets. People that want to be nurses need to have the proper training because they are dealing with someones life, but students are heading away from it because they simply cannot afford to take all the classes they need. Students are stopping early, before they finish all the training and that is a problem because hospitals are starting to be understaffed. Mark does not provide any ways he thinks this problem will be fixed but he is bringing it to light because he is a nursing professor and he disagrees with the way things are going. He does not think that a nursing student should start to learn how to use a drip 5 months before he is certified, he should learn it much sooner than that.

This article scares me a little bit because I am going to be going down that road soon and i do not want to have to stop because I cannot afford to go to school. But I also agree with Mark because nurses do need the proper training in order to be help responsible for other peoples lives, There is no way around the training, its just a part of the job, I do however think it sucks for those people that could not finish their training and are left with almost knowing what they need for their job, but still falling short. I overall agree with Mark and think that the training that nurses undergo should be revised.