ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to analyse the education and training in medical technology for nurses working at intensive care units (ICU). The study was carried out at three different hospitals in the western part of Sweden. The methods used were observation studies, in-depth interviews and questionnaires. In total, 115 nurses with a mean age of 40 years and 10 years of working experience answered the questionnaires. The results show that the nurses have little education in technology before they start working at the ICU. The introduction for new employees and the training programmes for new equipment are acceptable, but the possibilities for maintaining prior knowledge are few. To conclude, the quality of the education programme must be increased and the instruction material from the manufacturers has to be improved and considered as part of the product. A recommendation is that the manufacturers should Include active participation of the users in the product development.
