New Zealand Nurses' Ongoing Concerns of Using Digital Technologies during and after the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a rapid global uptake by healthcare practitioners, including nurses, of digital health to support the healthcare needs of their communities. This increase in the use of technology has impacted nurses, although there is a lack of research that explores nurses' concerns internationally, and this is equally true for New Zealand. We report the qualitative results from two surveys with New Zealand nurses, one in 2020 (n = 220) and the second in 2022 (n = 191), about their concerns of using digital technologies. Similar themes were discovered between the two data sets. Challenges around access were a common theme to both surveys. This included access to systems, connectivity, devices, and the Internet. The 2020 survey also identified inequities as a theme, whereas the 2022 survey noted poor engagement from staff. Changes to the infrastructure of the New Zealand healthcare system have been introduced, and it is hopeful that the issues of access to data and digital technologies across the country will be rectified.