Peck M L
J Holist Nurs. 1992 Jun;10(2):183-91. doi: 10.1177/089801019201000208.
The computer has become a major tool in the medical treatment of disease. Computers can record vital signs, keep records, and provide central networks for interactive diagnosis. Individual medical histories can be contained in an optical card the size of a credit card. Advances in technology just over the horizon will permit an individual to consult a computer much as one now consults a physician for diagnosis, recommendations, instructions, and treatment. Surgery can be conducted in "virtual space," with the physician operating inside the body (via computer) as if he or she were present at the site of the surgery. Only a step beyond this is the development of robots who can do a better surgical job than a human being. What is missing from this scenario? Tender loving care. That is the nurse's job, and it is something that computers cannot do because it involves feelings and human communication that are beyond mere technology. Consequently, nurses will be needed long after physicians have passed into limbo. The practical lesson of this look into the future is that, although nurses certainly must remain in touch with the cutting edge of technology, their primary purpose will be to retain and sharpen the skills that Florence Nightingale introduced. Human response will never be replaced by technology, and the unchanging need for the nurses' caring function will assure their future.
计算机已成为疾病医疗中的一项主要工具。计算机可以记录生命体征、保存记录，并为交互式诊断提供中央网络。个人病历可以存储在一张信用卡大小的光卡中。即将出现的技术进步将使个人能够像现在向医生咨询诊断、建议、指示和治疗一样向计算机咨询。手术可以在“虚拟空间”中进行，医生通过计算机在体内操作，就好像他或她亲临手术现场一样。比这更进一步的是开发出比人类做得更好的手术机器人。这种设想中缺少了什么呢？关爱。那是护士的工作，而这是计算机无法做到的，因为它涉及到情感和人际交流，而不仅仅是技术。因此，在医生被淘汰很久之后，护士仍将是必需的。对未来的这番展望所带来的实际教训是，尽管护士当然必须紧跟技术前沿，但她们的主要目的将是保持并提升弗洛伦斯·南丁格尔所引入的技能。人类的反应永远不会被技术所取代，对护士关怀功能的持续需求将确保她们的未来。
