Nurse-engineer partnerships can spur innovation

As trained problem solvers, nurses and engineers have much in common, according to the first in a series of articles on nurse innovators in the March issue of the American Journal of Nursing. The article described barriers to nurse/engineer partnerships and offered recommendations for success. In a case example, the authors looked at how some nurses moved infusion pumps away from the bedside to conserve PPE during COVID-19 surges. Collaborating on the problem with engineers might have yielded solutions with fewer safety risks, the authors suggested. “Empowering nurses to become innovators, forming nurse–engineer partnerships, creating a path for engineers to enter nursing, and encouraging nurses to be trained in engineering are all strategies that can help create the infrastructure needed for meaningful health care innovation,” the authors concluded. (AJN article, March 2022)