| Learning Objective #1: Articulate factors that impact the use of PDAs in rural clinical settings | |||
| Learning Objective #2: Discuss the impact that PDAs have on nurses’ professional clinical practice |
This study was part of a larger investigation designed as descriptive research. It is an analysis and interpretation of qualitative data obtained during telephone interviews with nurses during two summers of PDA use.
The sample consisted of sixteen nurses employed at nine seasonal satellite nurse-managed health center during the first summer and seven during the second season. Telephone interviews were conducted in July, August, or September of this two-summer project. These interviews were about 60 minutes in length. Two researchers participated in the interviewing, data recording, and initial data analysis process.
Five themes emerged from the data: PDA training, attitudes toward utilizing PDAs, advantages of utilizing PDAs, barriers to utilizing PDAs, and the impact of PDAs on patient care. The nurses had varied previous experiences with technology. For many of them, this was their initiation to technology. The nurses perceived the training and ongoing support as beneficial for them in learning how to use the PDAs in a clinical setting. Advantages of utilizing the PDAs included the reduction of writing and immediate data entry and retrieval. Barriers included the utilization of such small devices, time intensive to learn, and the lengthy turn around time for the CF cards. The positive impact on patient care included visualization of immediate changes in physical measurements and the reminders of needed services.
As some of the nurses became comfortable with this mode of technology, they utilized other features that streamlined their clinical practice.