Introduction: Critical care nursing in intensive care units is a specific and challenging area of nursing practice. A high level of specific knowledge is expected. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the impact of digital technology on the work of critical care nurses through a literature review. Methods:. A review of the scientific literature in English on the use of technology in the intensive care unit was conducted. The literature search was conducted using Google Scholar and the University of Ljubljana Digital Library web portal, PubMed and bibliographic database ScienceDirect. The fully accessible literature published from 2013 to 2023 was included. Results: Through a review of 14 units of literature, we identified eight themes within which we presented the impact of digital technology in intensive care units and identified advantages and disadvantages of its use. We found that the use of digital technology in intensive care units requires adequate knowledge. Lack of knowledge leads to fear in using digital technology and fear of increased workload. Education is key to overcoming barriers. This enables nurses to use digital technology appropriately. When used appropriately, digital technology can reduce the burden on nurses and allow them to spend more time with patients, thus ensuring safe nursing care. Discussion and conclusion: Nurses are key to quality patient care in intensive care units where there is
a high use of digital technology, which can have a positive or negative impact on their work. Technology has great potential, but it is becoming clear that what is supposed to help nurses in their work may at the same time be a burden, mainly due to a lack of knowledge. In order to integrate digital technology successfully, it is necessary to bring it closer to nurses, to highlight its positive impact on their work, and to educate them about its use. Although digital technology represents a major advance in health monitoring, the main responsibility for patients still lies with nurses.
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