projects such as this one. This year, we areasking every single fellow to contribute tothe extent that she can, a lofty goal that I

believe is attainable with our committedfellowship. So when the developmentcommittee, under the able leadership

of Joyce Fitzpatrick, comes knocking atyour door, please be as generous as youcan. �

Using Technology to Enhance Patient Care Delivery

E ffects of this nursing shortage are al-ready beginning to be felt in a num-

ber of regions in our nation, and certainspecialties, in particular intensive care andoperating room nursing, are reported asbeing hardest hit at present. The Ameri-can Academy of Nursing has appointed aCommission on Workforce, chaired byLinda Burnes Bolton, DrPH, RN, FAAN,to begin a multi-phased project to addressthe serious impending shortage of nursesthat is expected to occur in the UnitedStates during the course of the next decade.The commission, in partnership with theDivision of Nursing, Robert Wood John-son Foundation, ALARIS, Cerner, McKes-son, Seimens, Hill Rom, and others, is con-vening an invitational, multi-disciplinaryconference to address the demand side ofthe nursing supply and demand equation.Using Innovative Technology to Enhance Pa-tient Care Delivery will be held July 12-14,2002, in Washington, DC.

Clearly the current and future work-force shortages will have an adverse effecton the health of the American public.Today, many organizations, governmen-tal agencies, and health policy makers areendeavoring to address the supply side ofthe shortage problem. The AAN believesthat, while these efforts are essential, thedemand side of the equation must also be

addressed. For example, one area of de-mand that appears especially fertile forexploration and change is the indirect careactivities that consume the valuable timeof professional nurses. During the courseof the past several decades, studies haverepeatedly shown that a significant por-tion of hospital registered nurses’ workinvolves non-direct care activities; thisfigure has been reported as upward to 40per cent in some cases. Yet, there havebeen almost no efforts directed towardremedying this situation through the de-velopment and/or application of suitabletechnologies. This inefficient use ofnurses’ time has been largely unrecog-nized as contributing to the shortage ofnurses, either in the past or in our currenthealth care delivery system.

In this invitational conference, theAcademy will harness the efforts and en-ergies of the best minds inside and outsideof health care in an effort to redesignnursing practice and care delivery envi-ronments, creatively addressing the indi-rect care aspect of the demand side of theworkforce equation. Participants willwork with consultants/futurists to explorethe possible technologies that could bedeveloped to enable the nurse workforceto more efficiently and effectively meetthe demands of patient care. The ultimate

goal is to develop systems and other tech-nologies that will principally assist withnon-direct care activities so that the nursehas more time to devote to direct care.

The conference will begin Friday, July12, 2002, with a keynote address byRobin A. Felder, PhD, Professor & Di-rector, Medical Automation ResearchCenter, the University of Virginia. Dr.Felder will discuss the possible design of atechnology assisted work environmentthat improves practice and patient careoutcomes. Saturday’s session will beginwith Ed O’Neil, PhD, Director, Centerfor the Health Professions, presenting asummary of the supply and demand sidedata on workforce shortages and implica-tions for health practice and policy. Fol-lowing Dr. O’Neil will be a multi-disci-plinary panel presentation which willdiscuss what currently exists and whatcould be designed in the future. Partici-pants will be divided into work groupsand asked to develop recommendationsfor technology-assisted practice improve-ment. The conference will conclude Sun-day, July 14, 2002, with M. MichaelShabot, MD, FACS, Medical Director,Enterprise Information Services, CedarsSinai Medical Center, presenting strate-gies for implementation and evaluation ofthese innovative models. �

AAN News & Opinion..................................................................................................................................A m e r i c a n A c a d e m y o f N u r s i n g

A A N P u b l i c a t i o n A d v i s o r y C o m m i t t e e : Suzanne Bakken, DNSc, RN, FAAN, JacquelineFawcett, PhD, RN, FAAN, Suzanne L. Feetham, PhD, RN, FAAN, Roxie L. Foster, PhD, RN, FAAN, Mary R. Haack, PhD, RN,FAAN, Nancy Olson Hester, PhD, RN, FAAN, Judith A. Lewis, PhD, RNC, FAAN, Diane S. Pravikoff, PhD, RN, FAAN, JeanneSorrell, PhD, RN, Mary E. Stainton, MS, RNC, FAAN, Judith A. Vessey, PhD, RN, FAAN, Antonia Villarruel, PhD, RN, FAAN,Mary Wakefield, PhD, RN, FAAN, Donna Jean Zazworsky, MS, RN, CCM, and Carole Kenner, DNS, RNC, FAAN, chair

166 VOLUME 50 • NUMBER 4 NURSING OUTLOOK