NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

The healthcare industry recognizing the need for communication between information technology personnel and healthcare practitioners in order to address the issues of patient care, created nurse informatics specialist positions. Nurse informatics specialists are an integral part of the healthcare delivery process and a deciding factor in the selection, implementation and evaluation of healthcare, which supports safe, high-quality and patient-centered care (Elkind, 2009). The American Nurses Association (2008) defined Nursing informatics as “A specialty that integrates nursing science and computer science to manage and communicate data, information and knowledge in nursing practice (p. 1). Nursing informatics can also be defined as any use of information technology by nurses for the purpose of enhanced patient outcomes, the management of healthcare facilities, nurse education and nursing research.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Many healthcare individuals associate the field of nurse informatics as having two types of roles, the clinician who uses the health information technology and the specialist, who creates, facilitates, tests, and implements new information technology. Healthcare settings now integrate electronic medication prescribing, tele-health, online appointment scheduling and mobile laboratories where informatics nurses are essential in guaranteeing that the computerized solutions interface with each other (HIMSS, 2011). In order to accomplish information related activities, informatics nurses must synchronize and exchange significant clinical and technical information with the goal of supporting and coordinating safe, effective patient care and assuring an efficient workflow.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

A vital element of healthcare information is nursing documentation. Information systems are designed for nurses where documentation can be best utilized to expand their knowledge of quality of care. The evolution of knowing has been exponential in the past forty years due to the new ways of learning that have been discovered. Nursing in particular has benefited from these new concepts and continues to find newer and better methods to improve patient care. Nurses bring to their practice a personal history that develops the way their nursing care is performed. Nursing theory, standards of practice, legal and ethical obligations must be understood and utilized to enhance the quality of nursing care.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

The electronic patient record has become an important aspect in the information workflow, and using information technology will result in improving patient outcome quality and efficiency. Patient documentation is a vital skill in communicating the patient’s condition and organizing their care according to the patient’s needs. Nursing practice is primarily guided by patients’ needs and depending on those needs and their environments, different theories can be applied for individualized care. The application of individual nursing practice is based on an combination of medical, philosophical, psychological and other nursing theories.

NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Barbara Carper, a professor at the College of Nursing at Texas Woman’s University, wrote an essay in 1978 titled the “Fundamental Patterns of Knowing in Nursing,” that has identified four ways of knowing that nurses apply to meet patients’ needs. Today many universities and nursing colleges are using her fundamental patterns to help nursing students gain a more universal approach to assessing, understanding and treating patients. One of Carper’s patterns is the empirical knowing that is based on the result of the most relevant and supported evidence derived from research. This includes research related to nursing informatics and the use of technology in healthcare.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Before the digital age, nurses were utilizing paper forms to document important patient information. A significant factor in the nursing profession and healthcare systems is the transition to electronic documentation. Electronic documentation contains flow sheets that help in assembling information about the patient’s needs, improve the patient’s information accuracy, and enhance the quality of patient care. A well designed information system can facilitate and provide an easier and faster information flow that is needed for efficient documentation processing. NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper Nurses play an essential role in patient’s safety where the quality of the nursing environment and electronic documentation has a positive influence on patients. The electronic documentation method has evolved to provide a plan of care for patients, efficient communication between clinicians, and direct patient care processes. Nurses are very diligent in coordinating, monitoring and delivering patient care to guarantee effective documentation flow. Nursing computer based software allows nurses to collect, store, recover data and integrate clinical data with nursing management resources.

Among multiple healthcare organizations, nurses represent the largest technology user group. In the beginning nurses believed that electronic documentation and information systems were an interruption to their daily workflow and a disruption from bedside care (Lee, 2004). Over the years however, nurses have become more accustomed to the technology, which is positive since their acceptance of it is imperative to successful system implementation. Today, nurses are more proficient in all aspects of information technology while maintaining superior levels of patient care.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Most nurses now have a positive attitude related to the improved quality of electronic documentation and a new appreciation of the decreased workload afforded when using a well- designed system. However, despite the benefits of electronic documentation for nursing workflow, there are barriers that can obstruct the utilization of computerized documentation systems. Some of these barriers can result from behavioral issues in regards to perception and satisfaction toward information technology and the time spent documenting the patient information. The challenge comes when some nurses (i.e. older nurses) have doubts about working in a nursing environment filled with technology. Even though they are provided with reference guides, screen shots, and cheat sheets that are helpful, some nurses still have a hard time adjusting to electronic charting. NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper Some of them have a fear of clicking in the wrong place as they work with computerized charts and they become aggravated when they cannot perform their electronic tasks.

With electronic charting, nurses have the capability of accessing information quickly and efficiently and are able to use information to improve the quality of nursing workflow. In most of these situations, nurse informatics specialists play a pivotal role in assisting nurses in identifying and addressing these challenges. Many nursing theories have been developed to promote nursing practice efficiency. For an informatics nurse, change theory is the most integrated theory in their practice. Nurse informatics specialists apply theories in directing patient care, while providing guidance and technical assistance for staff nurse workflow as well as providing leadership for system change.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Kurt Lewin’s theory of change offers a tactical approach that can help informatics nurses in implementing and evaluating the projected changes in the system processes. An interesting article was written by Polly Ryan in 2009 where she stated that: “the integrated theory of health behavior change suggests that health behavior change can be enhanced by fostering knowledge and beliefs, increasing self-regulation skills and abilities, and enhancing social facilitation” (p. 161). Informatics nurses motivate and encourage nurses to use innovative problem-solving methods by providing them with support.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

The informatics nurse is part of the delivery of care, the building of knowledge, skills, and the experience in the use of information technology. They often lead clinical informatics committee meetings that have a major influence for nurses in assisting them to coordinate all the multifaceted technology activities in regards to patient care, documentation and safety. Informatics committees provide continuing guidance in the development and implementation of information technology and digital solutions for nursing practice and patient care. The significance of developing and maintaining positive attitudes and computer-use acceptance among nursing staff have been discovered in multiple literature reviews. For a successful implementation of an electronic documentation system, it is important to understand the various levels of computer familiarity, and acknowledge nurses’ computer use needs, attitudes, skills, beliefs and readiness to learn. An informatics committee also provides structure, support and staff development to nurses from different departments who interface with or are impacted by information technology.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Informatics and nurses support for ongoing professional development that implements the work knowledge of nurses leads to high quality care and patient satisfaction. Research reveals the importance of nurse’s involvement in informatics committee meetings where they can participate in system design, redesigning workflow, and improving interdisciplinary communication (Lee, 2007). Many nurses are professionally and ethically motivated to contribute to new knowledge, high quality improvement, and innovation through evidence based decision making.

Evidence-based practice and decision-making began with Florence Nightingale in the 1850s during the Crimean War. She realized a correlation between poor sanitary situations in the hospitals and rising death rates among wounded soldiers.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper Her consequent efforts to keep the hospitals disinfected in order to save soldiers resulted in a remarkable drop in patient mortality (Alligood, 2014). Since Nightingale’s work in improving healthcare conditions, the progress of evidence based practice has evolved over time. Effective nursing care relies on the gathering and use of nursing evidence. The pattern of empirical knowledge is founded in evidence-based research and objective experience, and has been identified as the most prevalent in nursing practice. Evidence based practice functions as the key standard for quality in nursing practice by enhancing patient satisfaction. Evidence-based quality improvement was redesigned to transform healthcare into an environment of care that is effective, safe, and efficient. Research is being used progressively as the basis for clinical decisions in many organizations. The stream of information through the increase of technology, has transformed the decision-making process for clinicians. Research authenticates, enhances and creates a scientific base for nursing practice and is facilitated and disseminated through the use of information technology and nursing informatics. The nurse’s ultimate goal through the use of information technology is patient education, while providing high quality care and most importantly patient safety.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

It has been observed that patient education has slowly become a major concern and that hospitals want to get involved in implementing better education for patients and their families. The importance of patient education is an example of critical study and evidence based practice by nurses that has shown that knowledge, on the part of patients and their families, can reduce re-admission rates, decrease healing time, improve mental discomfort, and produce better patient results. Today, patients are educated with the help of technology including modern televisions, I-pads and other sophisticated electronic devices where the patient can watch, learn and explore their illnesses and care. Partnership with team members and families is essential to optimal treatment. The application of individual nursing practice is based on an arrangement of the clinician and the patient. Traditional patient education relied on written material about disease processes, medication, medical management, and self-care instruction guidelines. Today, patients benefit from many forms of education and with all these forms of education nurses can provide patients with knowledge that enables them to understand the disease process and make important decisions about their health. Nursing interventions in proper patient education improves patient self-care, satisfaction, moral support, coping skills and mental stability. Addressing improvement in nursing workflow is essential to the improvement of patient stability and safety.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Healthcare outcomes including quality of life measures are the result of a multifaceted relationship between the patient, the nurse, the treatment and the information healthcare system. A strong foundation for addressing the challenges of electronic documentation is the informatics nurse’s capability to understand and direct the balance of patient care with the technology systems and organizational structure that supports this balance. In order to guarantee a successful implementation of a computer system while managing patient care it is important to integrate nurses’ perceptions, beliefs, and knowledge in the use of new technology and how nurses implement this technology into their daily nursing practice. Finding the right balance of information science in conjunction with nursing science is a continuing process that will rely on the forward thinking and perseverance of today’s modern nurse and the support of nursing informatics specialists.

NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Health information management (HIM) is information management applied to health and health care. It is the practice of acquiring, analyzing and protecting digital and traditional medical information vital to providing quality patient care. With the widespread computerization of health records, traditional (paper-based) records are being replaced with electronic health records (EHRs). The tools of health informatics and health information technology are continually improving to bring greater efficiency to information management in the health care sector. Both hospital information systems and Human Resource for Health Information System (HRHIS) are common implementations of HIM.

Health information management professionals plan information systems, develop health policy, and identify current and future information needs. In addition, they may apply the science of informatics to the collection, storage, analysis, use, and transmission of information to meet legal, professional, ethical and administrative records-keeping requirements of health care delivery.^[1] They work with clinical, epidemiological, demographic, financial, reference, and coded healthcare data. Health information administrators have been described to “play a critical role in the delivery of healthcare in the United States through their focus on the collection, maintenance and use of quality data to support the information-intensive and information-reliant healthcare system”.^{[2]NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper}  

The World Health Organization (WHO) stated that the proper collection, management and use of information within healthcare systems “will determine the system’s effectiveness in detecting health problems, defining priorities, identifying innovative solutions and allocating resources to improve health outcomes”.^[3]

Abstract Improving the quality of health care is a major goal worldwide. Nowadays, effective and efficient use of information technology on health care is increasing. Use of new technologies and electronic record systems are important in developing the knowledge in nursing practices. Nursing informatics are within the scope of health ınformation systems. Nursing informatics, come out as a result of using information technology in specific nursing knowledge and nursing practice. Using informatics nurses can provide individualized nursing care, education and counseling, and can perform more duties about health. Thus, the quality of nursing care and the quality of health care increase, and significant contributions, are provided to professionalization.Educational and application al studies carried out on nursing informatics have recently increased. This review was conducted in order to reveal the usage areas and usefulness of nursing informatics systems in nursing care. Keywords: nurse, informatics, nursing informatics, nursing care NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Ways Health Information Management Impacts the Quality of Patient Care

Informatics is changing the face of healthcare. As technology advances, healthcare organizations and providers are able to collect, analyze and leverage data more effectively, influencing the way care is delivered, resources are managed and teams operate each day. You would be hard-pressed to find an aspect of medicine that has yet to be touched by the mass collection and analysis of data that has been ushered in by the Information Age.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

One specific area that health informatics is having a significant impact on is the practice of nursing. Though the mission of nursing remains unchanged, the daily work of these professionals is being strongly influenced by informatics, with particular attention to the accuracy and communication of patient data and care.

Health informatics in nursing

The nursing profession is rapidly changing to keep up with advancements and new challenges in the healthcare field. As direct caregivers, nurses are in the front lines of patient care and consequently often feel the impact of changes in best practices more immediately than other healthcare professionals.

Spyros Kitsiou, Assistant Professor of Biomedical and Health Information Sciences at the University of Illinois at Chicago, reported that there are three specific challenges that healthcare is currently facing: the aging population, the incidence and prevalence of chronic diseases – such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and pulmonary disease – and the shortage of doctors and nurses. Though these problems are diverse, there is a solution that addresses all three: data.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

“A lot of these challenges can be supported by the avocation of information and communication technologies, particularly as hospitals are becoming more and more interested in reducing their costs and shifting care from hospital care to home care,” Spyros said. “Information and communication technologies, mobile health devices, wearable technologies are all becoming very, very important for supporting remote patient monitoring and home care.”

In nursing, as with healthcare in general, informatics is being used to address the challenges of the day, significantly impacting the way nurses function in patient care.

One of the primary ways that informatics has changed nursing practice is through documentation. Gone are the days of paper charts that had to be meticulously updated with handwritten notes. Today, nurses are more likely to input notes into electronic health records and other systems that keep a patient’s medical history up-to-date and easily accessible.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society reported that as the result of electronic charting, nurses are able to obtain information quickly and efficiently, using the information to improve the daily workflow. Storing the information electronically is more easily available to all members of the care team, including the physician and other care providers, as well as staff teams at other healthcare organizations that the patient may visit. As the U.S. population becomes more mobile, it is increasingly important that their personal medical records can travel with them to any office or medical organization they may visit during their lifetime.

Health informatics is also an important part of care coordination in nursing. The ability to track staffing, workflow and communication can help nurses to identify areas where current processes can be improved. This can also help ensure that staffing levels remain adequate, which is critical for providing patients with the best possible care. If the nurse-to-patient ratio drops too low, patients are more likely to suffer adverse results. Maintaining adequate levels helps nurses provide the best possible care each day without burning out.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Evidence-based practices have long been an essential part of nursing. Today, determining those best practices involves the use of health informatics. Analyzing the mass quantities of data collected regarding patient care and outcomes helps to determine how best to treat these conditions and situations in the future. The more data that is collected and analyzed, the more accurate the resulting conclusions tend to be, providing the best possible information for determining how best to care for patients in the future.

The growing role of informatics in nursing has also created a number of new job titles for those with clinical experience and an interest in working with data.

NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

A nursing career in informatics

Nurses at every level now work with informatics through patient records and other technology. However, some nurses choose to specifically focus their career on the intersection of informatics and clinical practice. There are a number of career options available in this lane, including the following:

• Clinical informatics specialist
• Nursing informatics specialist
• Clinical analyst
• Clinical informatics manager
• Clinical informatics coordinator
• Nursing informatics analyst

These roles can be found at every level and facet of healthcare organizations, including leadership and management, advocacy, risk analysis, compliance, consultation, research, evaluation and education. As informatics becomes a more prominent component of the nursing field, job opportunities will likely continue to develop.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

While health informatics roles are open to professionals from a variety of backgrounds, nurses are particularly well-suited for these roles due to their knowledge of clinical workflow, previous healthcare education and experience with healthcare technology and information systems.

If you already have a clinical background in nursing, your next step en route to one of these jobs is to pursue training specifically in health informatics. Though there are several ways to do this, one option is to earn a Master of Science in Health Informatics degree. In a master’s program, you will take courses on important topics such as healthcare information systems, healthcare IT vendor management, health information systems analysis and design and organizational issues in health informatics to prepare for a career in health informatics.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Benefits of Health Information Technology for Nurse Practitioners

Information technology systems are not just a thing of the cyber world meant for tech companies. Health care environments utilize ever-increasingly robust computer systems to manage staffing, track patient treatment, access medical profiles, and more. Just like medical professionals of all types who are adapting to a health care landscape that involves much more health information technology, nurse practitioners will need to become adept at working with computer and information systems as their use and integration increases in every aspect of health care.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Basics of Health Information Technology

Though health information technology is vast in form and function, at its core is the ability to better store and transmit information. One primary component of health information technology is the Electronic Health Record, or EHR. This record contains an individual patient’s complete medical history and should include everything from past treatments to allergies and current prescriptions. A well-developed EHR can provide a comprehensive outlook on a patient’s medical history and physical makeup. However, this type of data collection only scratches the surface of how information technology systems can be applied to health care. Applications exist that allow health care institutions to perform overarching functions such as tracking operations, scheduling staff, maintaining communication with both staff and patients, keeping real-time inventory information, and more. A health information technology system could affect every facet of a health care center’s operations.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Five Benefits of Health Information Technology

• Increased Patient Safety: Health information systems can not only store and display but synthesize patient information. This makes it possible to, for example, program security checks that could alert medical personnel of adverse effects the patient might experience on a certain medication before it is prescribed. Being able to store all of a patient’s information, including lab results, medical imaging, and more in one place can also help avoid costly mistakes that arise when not all relevant information is available during decision-making.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper
• Efficient Care Coordination: Information technology systems allow multiple medical professionals simultaneously involved in a patient’s care to record, disseminate, and share updates, logs, and findings. The nonprofit health system Catholic Health Initiatives, operator of more than ninety hospitals across multiple states, utilizes a robust information system that allows its staff to document and share every facet of a patient’s treatment and data. This cross-disciplinary information sharing has drastically improved patient satisfaction as well as helping coordinate care and case management to create a more seamless experience for caretaker and patient alike.
• Enhanced Performance Analysis: Utilizing technology could allow a host of avenues by which staff performance, patient care and stability, and institution efficiency could be tracked. Health information technology could compute staffing decisions based on individual skill sets. It could also allow treatment decisions to be made proactively based on past performance data.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper Patients could submit anonymous feedback regarding their level of care, providing administrators with better feedback on staff qualifications and fit. And governing bodies could utilize performance metrics to more accurately analyze institution effectiveness.
• Increased Patient Information Accessibility: Health information technology systems could allow seamless and instant access to patient records for every medical professional working with a particular patient, allowing lab technicians, specialists, physicians, and nurse practitioners to access pertinent information and better inform treatment. But not only do they enable better access for medical professionals, but for patients as well. Digital versions of patient files (including their entire EHR) could potentially be accessed from anywhere at any time, allowing patients to be more involved in their treatment plans and stay better informed about their conditions and care.
• Reduced Operational Costs: Information technology systems allow health institutions to more strategically allocate resources and save significant amounts of money, energy, time, and supplies. One example of this is utilizing comprehensive data concerning the specific needs of admitted patients and combining it with information about individual staff skills, availability, and even up-to-the-minute information including fatigue levels when applicable, to more effectively staff and arrange medical personnel to best serve patients. In addition to staffing arrangements, technology systems can allow better management of supplies. Inventory, refrigerator contents, equipment check-outs, and infinitely more can be tracked, viewed, and updated in real time with information systems.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper The Certification Commission for Health Information Technology reports that an estimated 50 percent of health finances may be wasted each year due to system inefficiencies, and that hospitals could save potentially millions of dollars by utilizing better health information technology.

Information technology systems are revolutionizing every industry in America today, and health care is no exception. Utilizing ever-increasingly robust systems in our medical institutions and procedures could not only increase efficiency but improve the experiences of staff, patients, and families and even save countless lives.

The Impact of Technology on Healthcare

Continuous technological developments in healthcare have saved countless lives and improved the quality of life for even more. Not only has technology changed experiences for patients and their families, but it’s also had a huge impact on medical processes and the practices of healthcare professionals.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Let’s look at the latest technological innovations, and the benefits and disadvantages they bring to both patients and professionals.

The Digitization of Health Records

The introduction of Electronic Health Records (EHRs) in replacing paper records has been a game changer for many allied healthcare professionals. Medical assistants, medical records and health information technicians (MRHITs), medical billing and coding professionals, and registered nurses are just some of the allied healthcare roles impacted by this implementation.

Nurses and technicians are now responsible for inputting patient data such as vital signs, weight, test results, etc. into a central, digitized system. On the administration side of things, medical billers and coders use EHRs for scheduling appointments, updating patient records with diagnostic codes, and submitting medical claims.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Among the many benefits EHR technology has brought to healthcare include:

Enhanced Patient Care

EHR can automatically alert the treating physician to potential issues, such as allergies or intolerance’s to certain medicines. EHRs can be accessed in any medical facility, which is extremely useful for doctors to access their medical history. This is especially important if the patient is unconscious.

Improved Public Health

EHRs provide invaluable data to clinical researchers, which advances medical knowledge and the development of new treatments for common health problems.

Additionally, a central and standardized system throughout the entire healthcare industry can identify a viral or bacterial infection quickly. This can give insights into how widespread an outbreak is, enabling preventative measures to be put in place much more quickly.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Ease of Workflow

Medical billers and coders are perhaps most impacted by EHRs, as the number of medical codes recently jumped from 13,600 to 69,000. Despite this huge jump, the introduction of EHRs has made life for medical billers and coders much easier.

Entering data into a computerized system is much less time-consuming than paper-based methods. It also reduces the risk of errors in patient data and financial details. Accessing patient records digitally can be done in an instant and viewed via portable devices, increasing efficiency and productivity.

Lower Healthcare Costs

According to a study from the the University of Michigan, the shift from paper to electronic health records reduces the cost of outpatient care by 3%. These researchers estimated this as $5.14 in savings per patient each month.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Healthcare informatics and technology can help nurses….

1. Further Education: Informatics allows for resources like Nursing Reference Center™ Plus to provide nurses with quick and easy access to trusted evidence-based information and education tools. Additionally, platforms like social media expose nurses to a vast array of health information and open the door for collaboration with other care providers.
2. Increase Communication: Informatics simplify communication. New healthcare technology enables clinicians to text, email and instant message.  Gone are the days of paging and calling. Clinician-to-clinician communication is now faster and easier than ever before, helping nurses and other clinicians spend more time with patients and less time having to track each other down to communicate about patients.
3. Save Lives: Everything from telemetry to automated blood pressure cuffs are considered informatics tools and help keep patients safe. As a nurse, you have so much to track and monitor. Being able to rely on equipment and healthcare technology like telemetry monitors helps reduce errors and makes it possible for you to be present and engaged with your patients.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper
4. Protect Themselves: Charting via an electronic health record (EHR) helps protect nurses if patient care activities are ever called into question later. All those hard stops in an EHR can feel frustrating, but they are actually there to remind nurses of essential charting pieces, keeping record that the right patient care has been delivered.
5. Increase Efficiency: A well-designed system or electronic health record can help nurses answer questions quickly, chart comprehensively and look up patient information effortlessly. All of this frees up time for the busy clinician that could be better spent with patients.

By embracing healthcare informatics and technology, understanding their strengths and weaknesses and using them to help clinical decision making, healthcare providers can stay ahead of the curve and help advance their practice and patient safety.

The rapid introduction of Information Systems (IS) in all aspects of society has left little time to consider the impacts or develop policies to take maximum advantage of these systems. Most organizations, including hospitals either use or are planning to implement IS in some capacity. The progressive growth of Information Technology (IT) has led hospital administrators to recognize IT as a powerful tool to enhance their organization’s productivity (James, Parag, & David, 1996). Many hospitals around the world are in the process of moving away from paper-based health information and implementing electronic health information to support patient care.

This shift appears to be timely. The sheer volume and variety of health information has caused problems in the delivery of patient care when using traditional information systems. For example, paper-based medical records are easily misplaced and can cause serious problems, such as the need for repeated diagnostic tests, delays in the planning of care, legal complications, and delayed patient discharges. Hence, hospitals have started to use Hospital Information System (HIS) to facilitate and improve the process of patient care via the generation of electronic health records (Ting-Ting, 2004).NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

HIS are designed to support clinicians in accessing and working with a variety of patient information (Gruber, Cummings, Leblanc, & Smith, 2009) and promoting health care quality through coordinated information sharing (Beuscart-Ze´phir, Anceaux, Crinquette, & Renard, 2001). HIS were first introduced in the 1980s to store more generic information such as data from laboratory examinations (Shusaku, 2002). The main goal of current HIS is to manage information from all healthcare-related activities, including planning, monitoring, coordination, and decision making. Key objectives of HIS implementation are to improve the availability of patient records by making information accessible for patient care; to decrease the wait time for diagnostic information, such as laboratory results; and to improve patient administration procedures (Kobus, Peter, Jakes, Mark, & Jeremy, 1999).

HIS implementation seems essential to meet increasing healthcare demands and the associated diagnostic, treatment and administrative system burdens; to support better patient care planning, and clinical or administrative decision making (Edward, 1995). The real-time access, exchange and receipt of clinical data provided by HIS have improved clinical documentation, reduced the duplication of care services, and supported better decision making related to patient care (Tiina, Tarja, Paula, Marianne, & Ilmari, 2009).NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Nurses are the key providers of patient care, including assessment, diagnosis and intervention (T. Lee, 2004). Nurses must quickly incorporate information about various patients and immediately organize and interpret the information to plan quality care (Bosman, 2009). Thus, it is imperative that HIS are designed to meet nursing care requirements to optimally coordinate patient care activities (S. Lee & Mcelmurry, 2010).

 The importance of information and system quality

Since the advent of HIS development, many high-level managers and health care planners have strived to detect factors that influence the quality of patient care. Many believe that the quality of health care is enhanced through information collected and accessed via HIS. Information and HIS quality are linked with the support of effective, timely and appropriate care services, reduction of health risk; efficiently streamlining clinical and administrative tasks such as communicating with patients, their families and other healthcare professionals; monitoring patient awareness; and achieving strategic planning and community health management goals.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

However, information alone is not valuable; its value is derived from the changes that it influences in decision making, so information quality is defined as data that are fit for use by data consumers (Richard & Diane, 1996). Health care environments are increasingly dependent on information and the volume of the data collected, stored and used has greatly increased, while computer dependence has also increased. Health care information and related data have grown larger and faster in the past decade. This information is more operational and complex than previous information. However, larger and more complex data are not necessarily better data. The most important issue in this field is the use of high-quality information to improve patient care. Thus, health information can be most effective when the data is high in quality.

A model of information system success provided by DeLone and McLean (2003) showed that information quality and system quality affect organizational services. Researchers have indicated that information quality consists of particular attributes, such as completeness, accuracy and relevance (Haslina & Sharifah, 2005; William & Ephraim, 2003) . System quality in patient care measures important HIS characteristics such as timeliness and reliability.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Timeliness refers to the length of time taken for information to be delivered to users, in other words, the period of the time between sending an order and the order being executed (Van Der, Tange, Troost, & Hasman, 2003). However, timely information depends on the nature of the information, as information sensitivity is different in various segments. Reliability means that repeated processes of collecting, storing and presenting data show similar results. Repeated tests on the same data must generate the same results. Hence, reliability is considered to be the cornerstone of information value (Yong, Huadeng, & Xiliang, 2009).

The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society defines nursing informatics as “a specialty that integrates nursing science, computer science, and information science to manage and communicate data, information, knowledge, and wisdom in nursing practice.” Informatics is becoming increasingly present in our profession due to rapidly changing techno logic advances. Healthcare systems are assimilating technology into daily practice at a quick pace. Security and patient privacy must be upheld while achieving the goal of transforming data into useful knowledge. Integrating informatics with evidence-based practice (EBP) can only help improve the care we provide to our patients.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Applying technology to knowledge may help identify potential problems earlier. For example, with the use of electronic documentation, identifying changes in patient status can occur quickly because the information is readily available. Trending of patient vital signs is always accessible and the data are interpreted, systematized, and arranged. The nurse is able to use this knowledge to formalize an appropriate plan of action.

Standardizing nursing language will facilitate acceptance of new methods of documentation in the electronic health record. A template for nursing notes is one method of assisting with our daily workload. The use of a template can remind you of important information required in the documentation of patient care.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Research studies, patient care data, and national and local standards are used to develop informatics programs at healthcare organizations. Other measures include return on investment analysis, patient preferences and/or needs, and infection control data. How’s the need for technology addressed? Let’s say a high rate of medication errors is identified. Analysis of how and why the errors are occurring must be conducted. The research can include collecting data from other facilities in the area to determine if the same problem exists elsewhere. Following data collection, the findings are presented to a review board. A plan to improve the problem is implemented, such as the use of bar code scanners. Data collection continues to determine if implementation is successful. The most important piece of implementation is presentation of the evidence to staff to identify how the change will improve the day-to-day actions of nurses.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

Nursing informatics is a growing field. As nurses, we face ever changing and challenging practice situations; competency in nursing informatics promises to strengthen our clinical decision-making skills. Although new technology may be a challenge for some, informatics will enhance nursing practice. We’ll have quicker access to patient information, improve overall efficiency, and see a reduction in potential errors.

Although Health Informatics (HI) and Health Information Management (HIM) may sound similar, there are many differences between the two fields. Both fields involve the use of technology in the healthcare field and share some common skill sets and job responsibilities, but there are more differences than similarities between these two distinct career fields.NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper

What is Health Information Management?

Health information management (HIM) can be described as the accumulation and storage of patient data. HIM involves the management of personal health information in healthcare organizations, hospitals and public health programs to enable delivery of services to the public. NURS 3010 – Information Management in Nursing and Healthcare Research Paper