I have been working in healthcare for 25 years. I started as a practical nurse and later studied to became a registered nurse. I began my postgraduate studies at Savonia university of applied sciences in January 2022, with the intention to graduating this year.

At the beginning of my career, there was a patient information system, but a lot was still handwritten. Electronic services were not available and email was not used for working. Work was mainly done with pen, paper and telephone. Telephone was an old-fashioned landline. Times have chanced significantly and sometimes it feels like I can’t keep up with pace of change. Nevertheless, digital tools for work are welcome.

Currently, I work as an assistant head nurse in a forensic psychiatric organization. The utilization of digitalization in my work is still limited. There are many opportunities, but it requires more resources. In my work I use a patient information system and some electronic forms. Email is also an important tool for work, as well as the possibility to hold meetings remotely. Various websites can be used as tools for patient care, such as the Mental health house, both now and in the future. There are many channels for personnel administration, handling personal matters through them is usually easy. Supervisory work goes easily electronically, such as scheduling work shifts.

In the future, digitalization could be utilized in various ways in my work. Developing physical environments with technology and different digital care pathways could be larger part of the future. However, the nature of the work is such that a human being can never be completely replaced. In my personal life, I appreciate being able to handle things through electronic channels, and these channels are constantly being developed. I feel that this way to handle things, saves resources for both me and the service provider. As what the future may hold? My perspective is still quite narrow, so it is hard to say.

GPDR

Individual privacy and data security become increasingly important as services and digitalization progress. Personal data is collected everywhere, and the risk of misuse is significant. Effective methods, measures and protections are needed, as well as informing people about the security of their actions when navigating in various platforms. If these measures fails, individuals may suffer greatly due to the compromise, misuse or exploitation or their data. Additionally, the right for individuals to access and review what information has been processed provides assurance that collected data is used only for its intended purpose. Organization where I work, requires successfully completing an annual online course on cybersecurity and data protection.

Chat GPT

The response of regarding the job description of a nurse in my field was surprisingly comprehensive and accurate, but general question about forensic psychiatry in Finland yielded partially incorrect information. While it maybe a useful tool, for example in writing, I wouldn’t trust the accuracy of the information without checking it out. It could be that I don’t yet know how to utilize artificial intelligence to its full extent.

Self reflection

This section of this course provided a lot of things to think about, especially when exploring posts from students in completely different fields. In many places, digitalization is much more advanced and used tool than in my own work. Previously, I have been aware of being behind in this aspect of digitalization, and once again, I was reminded of it. Partly, my interest in digitalization has only recently awakened and I have strong desire to learn more. This task also was a reminder that while there are many opportunities, there are also risks associated with digitalization. It is essential to prepare for these risks as well.