Technological Influence on nursing care:

Introduction

Thesis Statement: There has been improved practice of emergency nursing due to technology with a probability violation of privacy rights.

Overview: An unethical practice of a nurse has been discussed in this study by relating to technology use. In this regard, the case scenario of posting an image of a celebrity during a medical emergency has been used. The argument investigates the relevance of HIPAA, standards of law in healthcare, and legal norms in the professional environment to ethically responsible use of digital tools in the clinical environment. The paper represents the benefits, risks of healthcare technology, and explains how these lessons affect nursing practice in the future.

Purpose and Rationale: It aims to review how technology is to be applied safely to the nursing care, as well as how misapplication of the same can lead to some dire legal, ethical and professional consequences.

HIPAA, Legal, and Regulatory Discussion

Privacy of Clients and HIPAA Standards: HIPAA also secures any type of patient data, such as photographs, medical data, diagnoses, and any data that can be used to identify an individual. Once the nurse photographed Campbell in the emergency room and uploaded the photo to the internet, it was disclosed as protected health information (PHI). HIPAA demands that nurses remain secretive and will not share any information that can be identified with the patient without the written consent of the patient (HHS, 2025). Thus, the behavior of the nurse directly goes against the HIPAA Privacy Rule.

Technological Influence on nursing care: Communication is convenient due to technology like smartphones, digital cameras, and social media platforms, but with a high possibility of a breach of data (Tursyngaliyeva et al., 2025). Technology and social media can influence nurses to share the photos of celebrities, while it can be unlawful in the case of nurses. When the celebrity is present in the hospitals, the patient can be tempted to use the devices, but personal interest should not override professional responsibility.

Technological regulations in healthcare: Several federal and state laws inform the safe utilization of technology in the medical field. According to the State Nursing Practice Acts, confidentiality is a fundamental responsibility of the professional (Olorunfemi et al., 2024). The hospitals also have policies that limit the use of personal devices, provide staff training, and outline disciplinary measures in the event of a privacy breach. The practice on the part of the nurse will be against federal law and state professional standards, and institutional policies in this case.

Technological Legal Regulations: Laws dictate that nurses should only employ certified devices and safe channels of transmitting information to patients. Nurses should avoid using personal devices during their duty to provide care. The patient's related information should never be put on social media, even without mentioning names. Sharing information about a patient in search of entertainment or individual consideration would be regarded as unprofessional behavior, which can cause termination and penalties.

Scenario Ending and Recommendations

Scenario Ending Summary: The case mentions an unethical practice of a nurse of taking pictures of a celebrity without permission. The action of a nurse is unethical because it violated the privacy rights of a patient. The picture generates publicity in the media and invades the privacy of the patient. The administrators of the hospital get to learn of the breach and start investigating the behavior of the nurse.

Assessment of Actions of a Nurse: The act of taking and posting the photograph taken by the nurse was wrong, unethical, and unlawful. It was not judgmental, unethical in privacy laws, and the uncritical use of technology. The nurse was putting personal interest over professional duty to avoid inflicting damage on the dignity of the patient. This may result in disciplinary measures, firing, history penalties, and revocation of nursing licence.

Alleviation of Injury Recommendations: The nurse must ensure that the photo is removed as soon as possible, file an incident report, and report to supervisors so that the harm done can be minimized. Reporting the breach to Campbell is crucial according to HIPAA guidelines to the hospital. Sensitization of the staff on confidentiality and social media needs to be put in place to avert future occurrences. Hence, offering education can help reduce the challenges of confidentiality issues in healthcare.

Advantages and Disadvantages

The pros of Technology in Healthcare: Technology builds efficiency in emergency treatment through the formation of the capability to document quickly, produce digital pictures, and promote improved communication within healthcare divisions. EHRs will provide nurses with an access to patient information immediately, which will enhance decision-making and reduce errors (Adeniyi et al., 2024). Telehealth and digital tools also aid in timely interventions especially during major emergencies such as building collapses.

Security threats in using technology in healthcare: Although it has advantages, technology poses the threat of privacy invasion, cyberattacks, and inadequate information dissemination (Mallick & Nath, 2024). Personal devices and social media increase the chances of inadvertent or deliberate exposure of PHI. The excessive dependence on technology is another threat that causes a lack of focus on professional limits and moral values. It has also been identified that abuse of social media by nurses is increasingly being witnessed, and it is costing nurses both legal and reputational points.

Professional and Ethical Rules: ANA Code of Ethics demands that a nurse must uphold confidentiality, integrity, and guard the rights of the patient (Numminen et al., 2024). Ethical practice requires honest utilization of technology, respect for privacy, and the absence of activities that can cause harm to the patients.

Supporting Evidence: Digital risks can be mitigated through privacy training, effective institution policies, and constant surveillance (Qudus, 2025). It justifies that the healthcare needs to offer training to the nurses regarding the use of technology and confidentiality.

Conclusion and Reflections

Summary of Scenario and Recommendations: Capturing an image of the race car driver was against the HIPAA privacy rights. This is a move that can compromise patient confidentiality and destroy trust and expose the nurse and the healthcare facilities to legal and administrative consequences. To handle the breach, it is crucial to remove the image from social media. Therefore, giving training to the nurse regarding confidentiality, proper use of technology, and others in the future is required.

Connection to Thesis: This case reinforces the thesis statement that technology is beneficial in the medical field; it is extremely harmful when misused. Nursing care needs to focus on the care procedures, treatment improvement, as well as managing privacy and security of patients regardless of celebrity and general patients. The case helps to gain knowledge on the ethical concerns along with the solutions to use technologies for treatment betterment instead of violating privacy of patients.

Insights and Implications: The insight of this study discusses the misuse of social media and technologies in healthcare by violating the confidentiality of a celebrity. The major implication is that the nurse shared the photo without permission of a public figure, which went viral and violated HIPAA rights of privacy. The action resulted negatively in the trust building among healthcare and patients. Therefore, this scenario helped to educate the nurse about the necessity to be professional in the stress or excitement and interest.

Future Nursing Practice Implication: The experience will play a large role in the future nursing practice, as it will back the argument of compliance to HIPAA regulations. It is crucial to avoid using personal devices in the process of offering care to a patient and ensure the protection of patient rights. Professional, respectful, and safer nursing will be promoted because of the adoption of ethical practices of technology.

References

Adeniyi, A. O., Arowoogun, J. O., Chidi, R., Okolo, C. A., & Babawarun, O. (2024). The impact of electronic health records on patient care and outcomes: A comprehensive review. World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews, 21(2), 1446-1455. https://doi.org/10.30574/wjarr.2024.21.2.0592

HHS (2025). The HIPAA Privacy Rule. Retrieved from: https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/privacy/index.html [Retrieved on 21st November 2025]

Mallick, M. A. I., & Nath, R. (2024). Navigating the cyber security landscape: A comprehensive review of cyber-attacks, emerging trends, and recent developments. World Scientific News, 190(1), 1-69. https://worldscientificnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/WSN-1901-2024-1-69-1.pdf

Numminen, O., Kallio, H., Leino-Kilpi, H., Stokes, L., Turner, M., & Kangasniemi, M. (2024). Use and impact of the ANA Code: a scoping review. Nursing ethics, 31(8), 1389-1412. https://doi.org/10.1177/09697330241230522

Olorunfemi, O., Oyegoke, E. O., Abiodun, O. O., Kunle-Abioye, F. B., & Ayeni, B. A. (2024). Achieving a balance between ethical and legal obligations with regard to confidentiality and patient privacy. Amrita Journal of Medicine, 20(3), 90-93. DOI: 10.4103/AMJM.AMJM_7_24

Qudus, L. (2025). Cybersecurity governance: Strengthening policy frameworks to address global cybercrime and data privacy challenges. International Journal of Science and Research Archive, 14(1), 1146-1163. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Qudus-Lawal-3/publication/388524358_Cybersecurity_governance_Strengthening_policy_frameworks_to_address_global_cybercrime_and_data_privacy_challenges/links/67d87f88e62c604a0ddcb54b/Cybersecurity-governance-Strengthening-policy-frameworks-to-address-global-cybercrime-and-data-privacy-challenges.pdf

Tursyngaliyeva, G., Ermakhan, E., Sagyngalieva, D., & Aisulu, T. (2025, June). Digitalization of contact information through a mobile application. In Publisher. agency: Proceedings of the 10th International Scientific Conference «Scientific Results»(June 5-6, 2025). Rome, Italy, 2025. 449p (p. 29). University of Bari Aldo Moro. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kristine-Omadze-2/publication/392795690_Starting_point_of_Transition_Observation_of_the_Chief_Branches_of_the_Georgian_Economy/links/685307837869fe75c55a369c/Starting-point-of-Transition-Observation-of-the-Chief-Branches-of-the-Georgian-Economy.pdf#page=29