NurseMind is a dynamic to-do list with timings and a unique graphical user interface. It knows not only what we nurses need to do but also when.
It supports us in our delicate time management balancing act. It has the potential to create a small revolution in the way nurses do their work. (For ease of writing, we refer to nurses with the feminine pronoun though of course many are male.)
It is especially useful for:
- nursing students internalizing their new job's routine
- nurses who float to new units and need to work according to those units' procedures
- every nurse who grapples with the heavy cognitive load of this difficult job... in other words, all of us!
NurseMind helps us to:
- Prioritize ("What must I do next?")
- Manage time ("How much time do I have? How long will this take?")
- Anticipate bottlenecks ("I see a cluster of task icons half an hour from now, I'd better get started on those so I won't fall behind.")
- Take breaks appropriately ("Here is an opening in my work timeline; it's a good time for coffee.")
- Organize tasks by patient ("What does this patient need now?")
- Organize them by room ("What are all the things I can do while I'm here?")
- Optimize task steps such as anticipating and fetching the supplies for several tasks with a single trip to the supply room
- Shave seconds off record-keeping tasks by recording patient data more efficiently and more accurately than on scraps of paper (no more deciphering hasty scribbles).
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Recall essential patient data for:
- A call to the doctor to discuss a patient's change in status and perhaps to request a change in medication orders
- Charting -- every nurse knows that "if it's not documented it didn't happen"
- Report/handoff at the end of my shift
- Keep track of patients' special needs ("The meal cart is here but this icon by his name reminds me that he's NPO for surgery this afternoon").
- Check off (with a timestamp) tasks I've completed.
- Remember (using the "Remind Me" function) tasks that come up during a shift such as following up with the pharmacy that hasn't called me back, a patient whose pain med isn't working after a half hour, etc.
- Be certain none are forgotten.
For nurses who subscribe to the online service, NurseMind keeps a diary of:
- Shifts worked (hospitals, units, dates, hours)
- Tasks performed
- Summary reports about patients, e.g. percentage requiring diabetes care, wound care, etc.
- The app collects data that's never been available before.
The subscription also enables access to:
- Updated nursing protocols (mini to-do lists)
- Shared shift definitions (shift-length to-do lists)
- Newly-added patient precautions
- Hospital Quick-Refs (frequently-needed phone numbers, door codes, computer logins, acronyms, and more)