What is Nursing Informatics?
Nursing Informatics is the integration of clinical nursing with information management and computer processes˳ It is a relatively new focus in health care that combines nursing skills with information technology expertise˳ Nurse informatics specialists manage and communicate nursing data and information to improve decision making by consumers, patients, nurses and other health care providers˳
The nursing process has four main steps: planning, implementation, evaluation, and assessment˳ However, because information management is integrated into the nursing process and practice, some nursing communities identify a fifth step in the nursing process: documentation˳ Documentation and patient-centered care are the core components of the nursing process˳ Automated documentation is vitally important, not just for nursing, but for all patient care˳ Up-to-date, accurate information at each step of the nursing process is the key to safe, high quality patient-centered care˳
The successful implementation of information systems in nursing and health care requires the following: First, it is necessary to have well designed systems that support the nursing process within the culture of an organization˳ The second requirement is having the acceptance and integration of information systems into the regular workflow of the nursing process and patient care˳ Finally, it is important to have resources that can support the previously mentioned factors˳ One of the most effective and valuable resources a healthcare organization can add is a Nurse informatics specialists˳
Nursing Informatics Specialists
Nursing Informatics Specialists are expert clinicians with an extensive clinical practice background˳ These individuals have experience in utilizing and implementing the nursing process˳ These nurses have excellent analytical and critical thinking skills˳ They also understand the patient care delivery workflow and integration points for automated documentation˳ Having additional education and experience with information systems is also important for this occupation˳ Finally, Nursing Informaticists are excellent project managers because of the similarity between the project management process and the nursing process˳
To be competitive in this field one should become familiar with relational databases by taking a class about database structure˳ They should also become competent and comfortable with MS Office, especially Excel, Access and Visio˳
Why these jobs are Important to Healthcare?
Nurse and health informatics bring a great deal of value to patients and the health care system˳ Some examples of how they provide value include:
- Provide Support to the nursing work processes using technology
- Increasing the accuracy and completeness of nursing documentation
- Improving the nurse’s workflow
- Automating the collection and reuse of nursing data
- Facilitating analysis of clinical data
- Providing nursing content to standardized languages
HIMSS and RHIO
To provide some background on the field of healthcare/nursing informatics, there are some governing bodies for this field˳ The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) is the main governing body for health care and nursing informatics professionals˳ This group, formed in 2004, has the following four goals: NI awareness, education, resources (including websites), and RHIO (Regional Health Information Organization)˳
RHIOs are also known as Community Health Information Networks (CHINs)˳ These are the networks that connect physicians, hospitals, laboratories, radiology centers and insurance companies˳They all share and transmit patient information electronically through a secure system˳ Those organizations that are a part of RHIOs have a business interest in improving the quality of healthcare being administered˳
Steps to a Job in This Field
To enter into the nursing informatics field, typically you need a minimum of a four year degree˳ There are specific health informatics degrees available˳ Earning your Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing (BSN) is also a requirement before sitting for the ANCC certifications test for Nursing Informatics˳ Some individuals start with just a two year degree or diploma, but continue on to earn their BSN before becoming certified˳ Although there are several different routes for getting into the field, the most favored manner is to earn a Master’s in Nursing Informatics from the start, however, most individuals start their career prior to earning their master’s degree˳
Most nurses who are in the informatics field start in a specialty area, such as the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), Perioperative Services (OR), Med-Surg, Orthopedic Nursing, or Oncology, just to name a few, and work in that specialty field for an extended period˳ Working in a specialty area helps nurses get to know the normal working processes and routines as well as understand the patient care process in their specialty˳ They usually are experts at their specialty and then develop interests in computerized documentation or some other technological healthcare focus˳ They then tend to gradually move into an information systems clinical support role˳
If you have an interest in nursing and technology, this might be a career that can match both of these skills into one rewarding job˳
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