Technology has become an integral part of virtually every profession in recent decades. While in the past, that may have meant large machines and tangible equipment, technology tools for nurses now increasingly appear as cloud-based applications for laptops and mobile phones. Nurses now have many apps specifically designed for them, and these apps provide easy, instant access to information on the go, making their work less stressful and enabling them to provide a higher quality of care.
Here we discuss some highly rated nursing-related apps currently offered at the App Store and available free of charge. Some of these technology tools for nurses have a trial period or allow upgraded access for a recurring subscription fee. The apps are designed to help nurses become better at what they do and also to help nursing students become full-fledged nurses.
Technology Tools for Nurses
Doximity
The creators of this app state that it “helps over 1 million healthcare professionals take the friction out of everyday challenges that are unique to clinicians.” Doximity combines many tools that nurses and others working in the medical field use on a daily basis. The app enables users to make one-click audio and video calls to patients for telemedicine visits, which are becoming increasingly popular. Users can also fax medical records and lab results securely in compliance with HIPAA, search nationwide physician directories, and browse the latest news from the medical field or for a particular specialty within the field.
Doximity is also a networking tool that allows users to share their curriculum vitae (CV) and reconnect with former colleagues and classmates. In addition, the app enables the user to earn a continuing medical education (CME) credit, which most healthcare professionals are required to complete annually.
Picmonic: Nursing, NP, NCLEX
This app is designed to help nursing school students pass their exams (including the NCLEX-RN or NCLEX-PN), classes, and boards. According to its creators, Picmonic is used by more than a half million students and is “the world’s best mnemonic video and spaced repetition quizzing study tool that’s research-proven to increase memory retention 331%.” The app includes more than 10,000 quiz questions—including daily practice quizzes—and 1,000 mnemonic videos that cover a variety of major subjects.
Davis’s Drug Guide for Nurses
This app provides the critical information nurses need to safely administer medications to patients. It’s a comprehensive nursing drug guide containing monographs for more than 5,000 FDA-approved generic and trade name drugs. Included are drug interaction information; cautions for geriatric, pediatric, and lactating mother use; pharmacogenomic content; Canadian-specific content; details of herbal drug content; and proper drug name pronunciations.
Smart Medical Reference
Downloaded more than 200,000 times, this app is a one-stop medical reference guide. Smart Medical Reference gives users fast access to important information through a user-friendly, intuitive interface. The app has many valuable features, including:
- Lab values reference—Easy-to-understand, succinct coverage of 375 of the most frequently performed laboratory tests.
- Drug guide—More than 675 abbreviated drug monographs that provide trade names, generic names, drug classes, pregnancy risk category, and a controlled substance schedule.
- Differential diagnosis—At-a-glance reference for differential diagnosis, etiology, and classification of clinical disorders and their symptoms.
- Tests and procedures reference—Easy access to indications of commonly ordered diagnostic imaging tests and procedures.
- Medical calculators—Three kinds of medical calculators.
- Medical terminology—A listing of prefixes, suffixes, and root words that enables the user to interpret most medical terms.
- Medical abbreviations—More than 16,000 medical-related abbreviations.
- Publications—Access to PubMed, DailyMed, Medline, and more.
- Spanish dictionary—English to Spanish medical dictionary with translations of most common medical words.
Nursing Dictionary by Farlex
Nursing Dictionary by Farlex is a medical dictionary app that was designed specifically for use by nurses. It provides access to more than 56,000 medical terms, including 4,000 entries on medications, as well as 9,000 images. All information comes from authoritative sources such as Houghton Mifflin, McGraw-Hill, Gale, and Elsevier.
Nurses and nursing students alike can benefit from Nursing Dictionary by Farlex, which on supported devices offers voice search capabilities, a definition sharing function, unlimited bookmarks, and advanced search functions. Users can search across multiple disciplines in more than a dozen medical dictionaries and encyclopedic sources.
Technology for Our Online RN to BSN Program
The University of Texas Permian Basin enables you to earn your RN to BSN online in a CCNE-accredited program designed to accommodate your busy life. We understand that you may have professional and personal responsibilities along with your studies, and we’re committed to ensuring that you can earn a quality nursing education without neglecting these essential obligations.
Our flexible online format makes it possible to complete coursework at your own pace, from anywhere, 24 hours per day. Courses last as little as seven weeks, and you may be able to finish your degree and graduate in as little as eight months. Additionally, our RN to BSN online program offers six start dates per year, so you may be able to begin taking nursing classes immediately. When you’re done, you’ll be empowered by the decision-making and leadership skills needed to excel and advance within your nursing career.
What makes this online flexibility possible? Tech tools. Specifically, Canvas, a learning management system (LMS) that translates campus-based classes to the online setting. We use this LMS for all online courses at UT Permian Basin. To access your class online, you’ll log in at my.utpb.edu. Once you’ve set up your profile and notifications, you’ll be ready to actively participate in class. You can share information, join discussions, and pose questions to your instructors—experienced faculty, most of whom are former online students—and classmates using email, chat, and discussion boards. You can even set up virtual study groups. Canvas makes all of these advantages possible on your journey to an RN to BSN degree at UT Permian Basin.
Technology tools for nurses have forever changed the way we learn about and practice this critical profession. Experience the benefits of tech tools for yourself starting with our online RN to BSN program.
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