Nursing Technology and Informatics

Point-of-care computers in healthcare facilities allow for access to electronic patient records for nurses and other healthcare workers from anywhere in the facility.

Access to the World Wide Web within healthcare organizations enables nurses to have current research & publications at their fingertips.

Challenges

• Technology must address confidentiality and security concerns

• Information technologies need to support quality nursing care

• Informatics describes all aspects of computers and information systems

• Nursing informatics applies these to nursing science in the practice of nursing

• The core of informatics are– Data– Information – Knowledge– Wisdom in practice (Blais & Hayes, 2011, p. 290)

– Informatics nurse career opportunities • Acute and ambulatory settings• Universities• Consulting firms

– Specialty certification in Informatics available through ANCC

– Educational preparation• Graduate nursing• Post-master’s certificate• PhD

• Informatics Nurses Responsibilities may include– Systems implementation– Systems development– Liaison– Informatics education– Nursing education

Informatics Frameworks help clinicians understand how concepts are structured and operationalized– Data, information, and knowledge– Sciences underpinning nursing informatics– Concepts and tools from information science and

computer science– Phenomena of nursing

(Blais & Hayes, 2011, p. 292 - 293)

Time to reflect……• How has implementation of information

technology affected confidentiality in your work setting?

• What ethical concerns do you have about use of information systems in health care?

Research the topic and comment….Choose an aspect of nursing practice and find a

Web site with information regarding the topic. Evaluate the information on the Web site according to the following criteria: – Is the publication source trustworthy?– Does the information enhance nursing care and

practice? – Is access to the information user-friendly & current?