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NUR 514 The Evolution of Nursing Informatics Presentation

NUR 514 The Evolution of Nursing Informatics Presentation

NUR 514 The Evolution of Nursing Informatics Presentation

Introduction

This presentation includes a definition of nursing informatics and discusses the history of nursing informatics and how it has evolved. I will also discuss how nursing informatics impacts nursing leadership, clinical practice, administration, education, and research. In addition, I will explain how government regulation can impact organizational policy on health information systems. I will also explain nurse-led innovation relating to the advances in informatics and how informatics innovation can improve the quality of patient care.

Nursing Informatics

Nursing informatics is a specialty that integrates nursing science with information and analytical sciences. It seeks to identify, define, manage, and communicate information and knowledge in nursing practice. A nurse informaticist uses their clinical skills with knowledge of technology, computers, and data (Asiri, 2018). Nurse informaticists take on complex tasks like utilizing health data to analyze patient care outcomes and training other nursing staff on new patient care technology. Nursing informatics is committed to delivering high-quality patient care through efficient management of data and technology systems. Nurse informaticists use data to analyze trends, monitor for errors, and implement new, more efficient information systems (Asiri, 2018). Nursing informatics focuses on patient care, particularly by optimizing the technology used by nurses.

History of The Field of Nursing Informatics

The term nursing informatics was first proposed by Scholes and Barber in 1976. The first computer applications in nursing practice appeared in the literature in the early 1970s. In the 70s, nursing informatics was supported by the development of some of the early health information systems (HIS) by multiple agencies in the US (Blažun Vošner et al., 2020). The HIS included nursing care planning and documentation. Besides, nurses were involved in interdisciplinary efforts that sought to develop and implement applications that support health care. Through the ’80s, NI practice, education, and scholarship thrived and grew in the US (Blažun Vošner et al., 2020). In the 1990s, large integrated healthcare delivery systems evolved, which further created the need for information across healthcare organizations within the large systems to regulate processes, control costs, and assure the quality of care.

How the Specialty Has Evolved

Since the introduction of computer applications in nursing, nursing informatics has evolved to become one of the foundation stones of the health informatics field. Nursing informatics has evolved not only in practice but also in education and research.  In 1988, the first graduate program in Nursing Informatics was launched at the University of Maryland School of Nursing focusing on understanding nursing informatics systems and science (Asiri, 2018). In 1990, the University of Utah launched a graduate program for Nursing Informatics targeting the transformation of data into clinical decision-making. In 1992, Nursing Informatics was formally recognized as a nursing specialty by the American Nurses Association. In 1995 Nursing Informatics certification was introduced through the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). In 2003, the first doctorate in nursing with a healthcare informatics option was introduced at the University of Arizona College of Nursing (Asiri, 2018). Today, with the advancement in technology, more institutions are offering varied Nursing Informatics degrees as a part of their nursing programs.

NI Impact on Nursing Leadership

Nursing informatics helps nurse leaders to combine their analytical and clinical skills to provide their patients with the highest quality care. Nurse leaders must demonstrate abilities and develop specific informatics competencies to provide meaningful leadership and support the continuing transformation of the healthcare system (Kennedy & Moen, 2018). They are required to leverage healthcare technology to improve healthcare goals. Research shows that nurse leaders who have adopted healthcare technology have significantly improved outcomes for all stakeholders, including patients, nurses, and healthcare teams (Kennedy & Moen, 2018). Nurse leaders are positioned to adopt informatics research to improve patient care. Furthermore, nurse leaders are now using informatics to analyze trends in patient care and identify potential errors in delivering care.


NI Impact on Clinical
Practice

Nursing informatics plays a key role in the nursing process. Nurses obtain patient information and use the data to develop nursing care plans, execute the plan, and communicate findings with other providers. Advances in nursing informatics have enabled nurses to access vital patient data with the click of a button. In hospitals and clinic offices, providers have access to electronic health records, which enable them to access private and confidential patient health information in a secure environment (Al Najjar & Shafie, 2022).  In addition, informatics has impacted clinical practice through services such as telehealth, which provide a channel for client education and medical and healthcare services like health monitoring and clinical diagnosis (Al Najjar & Shafie, 2022). Currently, health providers can communicate and plan care more effectively, in collaboration with patients and other providers, owing to technological advances.

NI Impact on Administration

Nursing informatics is revolutionizing how health care is delivered. Healthcare systems are integrating wireless solutions, high-speed data networks, handheld devices, automated exchanges between organizations/providers and patients, and various social media platforms into their daily interactions (Al Najjar & Shafie, 2022). Informatics has helped healthcare administrators and managers to communicate more efficiently with the medical personnel in their organizations. Furthermore, informatics helps healthcare administrators to customize incentive plans for patients. Health informaticists help managers in the healthcare industry access pertinent information to produce actionable insights that enhance both therapeutic and organizational efficiency (Kennedy & Moen, 2018). Informatics enables health administrators to access patient data that enables them to provide administrative services, like appropriately billing patients.

NI Impact on Education

The evolvement of nursing informatics has led to the establishment of degree programs in informatics to equip nurses with knowledge and skills in this field. Graduate programs at Master’s and Doctorate levels continue to grow. They provide education, certification, and credentialing to expand the knowledge, skills, and vision required for the nursing informatician of today and tomorrow (Singh & Masango, 2020). In addition, nursing informatics has led to the introduction of informatics in the nursing curricula to teach nursing students to use technology and informatics. This ensures that nursing students acquire the necessary psychomotor skills related to the use of technology hardware and software important in healthcare settings.


NI Impact on Research

Informatics literacy is considered a vital issue in improving nursing evidence-based practice (EBP). Informatics and computer skills are crucial components that support and reinforce the EBP framework. Nurses and other health providers are expected to have high-level information literacy to improve their science-based performance (Abdekhoda & Khezri, 2021). The clinical team particularly nurses who have a crucial role in caring for patients, use informatics to obtain information on the latest changes related to clinical care. They also use informatics to update themselves on the latest clinical information to better patient care.  Health providers use online databases to stay up-to-date on current research and make decisions based on that research, thus increasing the chances of improved health care. To effectively search databases, nurses must have information literacy skills like how to organize information in databases, create and arrange search terms, and create search strategies to obtain high-quality literature in research (Abdekhoda & Khezri, 2021).

Impact of Government Regulation on Health Information Systems

Government regulations lay the foundation for the documenting, storing, and use of electronic health information (EHI). Government laws play a key role in enabling health departments to use HIT to optimize systems that use patient information to monitor population health trends and interface with similar HIT systems used by healthcare providers and hospitals (Ramanathan et al., 2018). The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) creates regulations that outline the standards and certification criteria that EHRs must meet to assure health providers and hospitals that the systems they take on can perform various functions (Ramanathan et al., 2018). Thus, this regulation can affect organizational policies on EHR systems since hospitals must comply with and adopt EHR systems that meet the ONC’s regulations. Government regulations like the HITECH Act drive health organizations to adopt security that promotes secure electronic health information exchange.

Nurse-Led Innovation

The rapid development of healthcare technology gives opportunities for innovations to transform healthcare practices. Nurse-led innovation is vital for enhancing workflow. It should be encouraged and backed up by health systems, and academic settings. Nurse informatics brings added value to the innovation space by consistently focusing on patient quality and safety while promoting a high standard of care (Kelley, 2019). With the widespread use of EHR and clinical information system, nurses have been introduced to the change-making process that involves diffusing innovation in healthcare. Nursing informatics innovations are anticipated to enhance the effectiveness, efficiency, safety, timeliness, and patient-centeredness in patient care and improve patients’ access to healthcare services (Kelley, 2019). However, adopting nursing informatics innovations should be guided by evidence and there should be careful deliberation of anticipated and possibly unintended outcomes.

The rapid development of healthcare technology gives opportunities for innovations to transform healthcare practices. Nurse-led innovation is vital for enhancing workflow. It should be encouraged and backed up by health systems, and academic settings. Nurse informatics brings added value to the innovation space by consistently focusing on patient quality and safety while promoting a high standard of care (Kelley, 2019). With the widespread use of EHR and clinical information system, nurses have been introduced to the change-making process that involves diffusing innovation in healthcare. Nursing informatics innovations are anticipated to enhance the effectiveness, efficiency, safety, timeliness, and patient-centeredness in patient care and improve patients’ access to healthcare services (Kelley, 2019). However, adopting nursing informatics innovations should be guided by evidence and there should be careful deliberation of anticipated and possibly unintended outcomes.

Conclusion

Nursing informatics is a specialty that integrates nursing science with information and analytical sciences. The term nursing informatics was first proposed by Scholes and Barber in 1976. In 1992, Nursing Informatics was formally recognized as a nursing specialty by the American Nurses Association. Nurse leaders are required to leverage healthcare technology to improve healthcare goals. Nursing informatics helps administrators to access pertinent patient information to produce actionable insights. Informatics innovations can be used to identify medical errors and improve documentation. Information from databases and patient records can be used to generate knowledge that helps to predict patients at high risk for certain diseases or medical events.


References

}Abdekhoda, M. & Khezri, H. (2021). Investigating the impact of health informatics literacy on the evidence-based practice of nursing. Online Journal of Nursing Informatics (OJNI), 25(2).  https://www.himss.org/resources/online-journal-nursing-informatics

}Al Najjar, R. I., & Shafie, Z. M. (2022). Impact of Nursing Informatics on the Quality of Patient Care. International Journal Of Medical Science And Clinical Research Studies2(5), 418-421. https://doi.org/10.47191/ijmscrs/v2-i5-19

}Asiri, H. (2018, February). An overview of nursing informatics (NI) as a profession: how we evolved over the years. In International Conference on Health Informatics (Vol. 6, pp. 200-212). SCITEPRESS.

Blažun Vošner, H., Carter-Templeton, H., Završnik, J., & Kokol, P. (2020). Nursing Informatics. CIN: Computers, Informatics, Nursing, Publish Ahead of

}Kelley, T. (2019). The emergence of Nursing Innovation Influenced by Advances in Informatics and Health IT. Nurse Leader. doi:10.1016/j.mnl.2019.09.012

}Kennedy, M. A., & Moen, A. (2018). Nurse Leadership and Informatics Competencies: Shaping Transformation of Professional Practice. Studies in health technology and informatics232, 197–206.

}Ramanathan, T., Schmit, C., Menon, A., Sunshine, G., & Pepin, D. (2018). Federal public health laws supporting data use and sharing.

}Singh, F., & Masango, T. (2020). Information technology in nursing education: perspectives of student nurses. The Open Nursing Journal, 14(1). DOI: 10.2174/1874434602014010018

Introduction

Nursing Informatics  Practice

Role of Nursing Informatics in Health Systems

Role of Advanced Registered Nurse Leader

Informatics as a core Aspect Quality Care Delivery

Objectives of the Presentation

Definition of Nursing Informatics & Its History

Nursing Informatics Impacts on Nursing Leadership, Clinical Practice, Education  & Research

Effects of Government Regulations on Organizational Policy on Health Information Systems

Nurse-Led Innovation & Relationship with Advances in Informatics

Using Informatics to Improve Quality of Patient Care

Example of Nurse’s Role in Health Care Data transformation into Knowledge to enhance patient care using Informatics Practice

The objectives of the presentation include defining nursing informatics and its history, the impact of nursing informatics on nursing leadership, clinical practice, education and research in the profession. The presentation delves into the effects of regulations by government on health information systems’ policies and the role of nurse-led innovation models as well as the relationships due to the advances in informatics. The presentation also looks at the use of informatics to enhance quality of patient care. Lastly, the presentation provides an example of nurse’s role in health care data transformation and knowledge to enhance patient care by deploying informatics in their practice.

Definition of Nursing Informatics & History

vDefining Informatics (ANA)

vRoles and Requirements

vValue of Nursing Informatics

vClinical Workflows

The American Nurses Association (ANA) asserts that nursing informatics is a specialty in the profession which integrates nursing science and different information and analytical sciences aimed at identifying, defining, managing and communicating information, data, knowledge and wisdom in nursing practice. The implication is that nursing informatics play critical roles in health care. Those seeking to join the specialty should possess a bachelor’s degree in nursing (BSN) as the minimum. However, those seeking leadership as advanced practice nurses should have a master’s degree and certification. They should also possess experience and strong technical skills and project management capabilities alongside experience in leadership (Kelley, 2019). Nursing informatics specialists are the translators that have transformed into health technology innovators to improve overall quality of care.

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Value in Healthcare

vNursing Informatics Professionals are distinct, hybrid heroes of healthcare

vAdvocate for impactful Innovation

vThe Contributions and guidance improve workflows for healthcare staff and Best Practices

vEvolving Value of Nursing Informatics

Informatics nurses are distinct professionals and hybrid heroes in healthcare who advocate for impactful innovations to keep patients safe and at the focus of care provision. Their contributions and guidance lead to improved workflow for healthcare staff and allow them to develop best practices through effective management of informatics structures processes and use of technology (Kelley, 2019). Through this approach, nursing informatics has an evolving value to health care for better quality care.

History of Nursing Informatics

From the start of modern nursing, data emanating from standardized patient records were considered as essential resources in assessing and enhancing the quality of care. Nursing informatics began to evolve in the second part of the last century but did not have a standardized language. The attributes of computability and semantic interoperability affected the realization of the specialty until 1980s when it emerged as an essential part of enhancing patient care quality. The American Nursing Informatics Association (ANIA) was established in 1992 after the ANA recognized the specialty as a critical component of healthcare provision. The 1980s is considered as the growth-spurt decade which enabled the profession to be what it is today (Knox, 2019). The implication is that to realize the potential of nurses to transform and enhance health care and outcomes through informatics will need fundamental changes among individuals, organizations and systems.

Nursing Informatics Impacts on Nursing Leadership, Clinical Practice & Administration

vImpacts of Nursing Informatics on Leadership

vNursing informatics on clinical Practice

vNursing Informatics

vNursing Informatics on Administration

Nursing informatics impacts nursing leadership as it implores nurse leaders and those in the management of organizations to develop innovative care models by leveraging on information technology. Nurse leadership focus on enhancing quality care and through informatics, nurse leaders can improve patient care and outcomes. Nursing informatics affects clinical practice through the collection and analysis of, and leveraging data to make more effective care decisions and choices. Informatics influences the nursing practice through the management of resources and development of multidisciplinary teams to improve care delivery. Nursing informatics has impacted documentation as nurses no longer need paper charts that had to be updated meticulously using handwritten notes and comments (Moore et al., 2019). Nurses are more likely to use electronic health records and other forms of documentation to input patient’s health information and medical history. Informatics impact healthcare administration through leveraging data to make staff schedules, care plans and use evidence-based practice interventions in healthcare delivery.

Impact of Nursing Informatics on Education and Research

Nursing informatics is an essential component of quality care delivery and affects education and research in nursing. Due to increased use of informatics nursing, nurses can enhance their competence in using health information technology. Faculty nurses can integrate the aspects of health information into curriculum at all levels of nursing training. A core aspect of nursing informatics is the value-addition that it has on health care outcomes and increased need for more research on using effective documentation for delivery (Farokhzadian et al., 2020). The increased integration of health information technology with artificial intelligence underscores the critical approach to better documentation and outcomes as well as effective decision making and IT training for nurse practitioners.

Organizational policies on Health Information Systems and Government regulations

vAdherence and Compliance to Existing Regulations

vPatient Safety and Data Security Protocols

vPrivacy Protection  &  Confidentiality

vHIPAA, HITECH, Affordable Care Act 2010

Organizational policies create goals that technical mechanisms serve, highlight appropriate uses and release of information, create avenues for prevention and detection of breaches and set rules to discipline offenders. Organizational policies must create a balance between the need to access appropriate and relevant health information for care provision and the protection of patients’ rights to privacy and compliance to existing legal frameworks. Imperatively, government regulations on patient safety and data security are critical aspects when designing organizational policies in nursing informatics and other aspects of health information technology (Moore et al., 2019). Patients can only reveal their information when they know that their privacy and confidentiality rights are guaranteed by the health care providers or system. This means that government regulations like HIPAA, HITECH, and Affordable Care Act 2010 provisions are upheld by a healthcare provider.

Nursing informatics is among the nursing specialties characterized by remarkable growth. As health care providers continue to use electronic health records and information systems, the relevance and application of nursing informatics will be more dominant. The purpose of this presentation is to explore nursing informatics from multiple dimensions to understand its importance and influence. Focus areas include defining nursing informatics, history, and its effects on critical areas such as nursing education, leadership, and clinical practice. It further explores the effects of government regulation on organizational policy on health information systems, nurse-led innovation, and an example of the nurse’s role in transforming health care data into knowledge.

 

Nursing informatics is among the increasingly growing nursing specialties as the nursing field evolves. According to the American Nurses Association, nursing informatics is a specialty that combines nursing with information and analytical sciences to develop and maintain medical data and systems that support the nursing practice (Hussey & Kennedy, 2021). Blending nursing, computer, and analytical sciences is critical to improving patient outcomes. Different technologies have evolved as a result of nursing informatics. The most dominant is electronic health records (EHRs) that contain digitized patients’ data that can be shared across health care settings. The other technology is computerized provider order entry (CPOE) which primarily involves entering and sending treatment instructions using computer applications.

 

Understanding the roles of nurse informaticists can help to explore further what nursing informatics involves. As health systems continue accessing and using data, nurse informaticists continue to be more pivotal in health care transformation as they serve three primary responsibilities. The first responsibility is communicating the reasons behind new processes. Generally, nursing informatics is associated with process changes that the nursing workforce needs to understand. For instance, data must be collected accurately without estimations. Nurse informaticists ensure that such process changes are understood in detail. Nurse informaticists are also centrally involved in implementing new technologies and processes. Data validation includes promoting data-driven decision-making through effective data adoption. The roles demonstrate how nursing informatics is associated with significant transformations as health care processes become more data-centered.

Nursing informatics has a rich history as the specialty evolves from one phase to another. Conceptually, nursing informatics dates back to Florence Nightingale as she complied and processed data to improve medical protocols. As a field centered on information technology, specific engagement with technologies in nursing can be traced to the 1960s, before the first conference on nursing and computers (Frenn & Whitehead, 2020). Other crucial dates in the history of nursing informatics include defining nursing informatics as a specialty in 1992 and outlining practice’s scope and standards in 1994-1995. As Frenn and Whitehead (2020) further explained, the first set of competencies was introduced in 2001 before revision in 2015. More transformation is expected as technology evolves.

Nursing informatics has evolved gradually, and the evolution can be grouped into distinct phases with unique features. The first phase is introducing the concept into the health care arena in the 1960s and 1970s (Frenn & Whitehead, 2020). The introduction laid the foundation of data application and computer use in health care before advancing into a more complex and independent field. The second phase is data collection through machines as data started becoming an essential component of health care delivery. Such machines include mechanical ventilators that collect patients’ vitals in intensive care units. Later, nursing informatics advanced to be primarily about applying computer-based information systems [computers playing a major role in health care delivery] before becoming an independent specialty.

The influence of nursing informatics on nursing leadership cannot be underestimated. Through informatics, nurse leaders can communicate more effectively with other health care personnel. To benefit from such opportunities, nurse leaders must be more tech-savvy and increasingly committed to adopting new health care technologies and systems. Due to its increased relevance in health care delivery, nursing informatics also changes the role landscape of nurse leaders. It makes nursing leadership acquire new roles, including adopting health care processes that promote evidence-based practice, interprofessional collaboration through health care technologies, and leveraging health information technology in health care organizations. Nursing leadership must also focus on fostering progressive improvement in clinical systems as new technologies emerge.

This presentation includes a definition of nursing informatics and discusses the history of nursing informatics and how it has evolved. I will also discuss how nursing informatics impacts nursing leadership, clinical practice, administration, education, and research. In addition, I will explain how government regulation can impact organizational policy on health information systems. I will also explain nurse-led innovation relating to the advances in informatics and how informatics innovation can improve the quality of patient care.

Nursing informatics is a specialty that integrates nursing science with information and analytical sciences. It seeks to identify, define, manage, and communicate information and knowledge in nursing practice. A nurse informaticist uses their clinical skills with knowledge of technology, computers, and data (Asiri, 2018). Nurse informaticists take on complex tasks like utilizing health data to analyze patient care outcomes and training other nursing staff on new patient care technology. Nursing informatics is committed to delivering high-quality patient care through efficient management of data and technology systems. Nurse informaticists use data to analyze trends, monitor for errors, and implement new, more efficient information systems (Asiri, 2018). Nursing informatics focuses on patient care, particularly by optimizing the technology used by nurses.

The term nursing informatics was first proposed by Scholes and Barber in 1976. The first computer applications in nursing practice appeared in the literature in the early 1970s. In the 70s, nursing informatics was supported by the development of some of the early health information systems (HIS) by multiple agencies in the US (Blažun Vošner et al., 2020). The HIS included nursing care planning and documentation. Besides, nurses were involved in interdisciplinary efforts that sought to develop and implement applications that support health care. Through the ’80s, NI practice, education, and scholarship thrived and grew in the US (Blažun Vošner et al., 2020). In the 1990s, large integrated healthcare delivery systems evolved, which further created the need for information across healthcare organizations within the large systems to regulate processes, control costs, and assure the quality of care.

Since the introduction of computer applications in nursing, nursing informatics has evolved to become one of the foundation stones of the health informatics field. Nursing informatics has evolved not only in practice but also in education and research.  In 1988, the first graduate program in Nursing Informatics was launched at the University of Maryland School of Nursing focusing on understanding nursing informatics systems and science (Asiri, 2018). In 1990, the University of Utah launched a graduate program for Nursing Informatics targeting the transformation of data into clinical decision-making. In 1992, Nursing Informatics was formally recognized as a nursing specialty by the American Nurses Association. In 1995 Nursing Informatics certification was introduced through the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). In 2003, the first doctorate in nursing with a healthcare informatics option was introduced at the University of Arizona College of Nursing (Asiri, 2018). Today, with the advancement in technology, more institutions are offering varied Nursing Informatics degrees as a part of their nursing programs.

Nursing informatics helps nurse leaders to combine their analytical and clinical skills to provide their patients with the highest quality care. Nurse leaders must demonstrate abilities and develop specific informatics competencies to provide meaningful leadership and support the continuing transformation of the healthcare system (Kennedy & Moen, 2018). They are required to leverage healthcare technology to improve healthcare goals. Research shows that nurse leaders who have adopted healthcare technology have significantly improved outcomes for all stakeholders, including patients, nurses, and healthcare teams (Kennedy & Moen, 2018). Nurse leaders are positioned to adopt informatics research to improve patient care. Furthermore, nurse leaders are now using informatics to analyze trends in patient care and identify potential errors in delivering care.

Nursing informatics plays a key role in the nursing process. Nurses obtain patient information and use the data to develop nursing care plans, execute the plan, and communicate findings with other providers. Advances in nursing informatics have enabled nurses to access vital patient data with the click of a button. In hospitals and clinic offices, providers have access to electronic health records, which enable them to access private and confidential patient health information in a secure environment (Al Najjar & Shafie, 2022).  In addition, informatics has impacted clinical practice through services such as telehealth, which provide a channel for client education and medical and healthcare services like health monitoring and clinical diagnosis (Al Najjar & Shafie, 2022). Currently, health providers can communicate and plan care more effectively, in collaboration with patients and other providers, owing to technological advances.

Nursing informatics is revolutionizing how health care is delivered. Healthcare systems are integrating wireless solutions, high-speed data networks, handheld devices, automated exchanges between organizations/providers and patients, and various social media platforms into their daily interactions (Al Najjar & Shafie, 2022). Informatics has helped healthcare administrators and managers to communicate more efficiently with the medical personnel in their organizations. Furthermore, informatics helps healthcare administrators to customize incentive plans for patients. Health informaticists help managers in the healthcare industry access pertinent information to produce actionable insights that enhance both therapeutic and organizational efficiency (Kennedy & Moen, 2018). Informatics enables health administrators to access patient data that enables them to provide administrative services, like appropriately billing patients.

The evolvement of nursing informatics has led to the establishment of degree programs in informatics to equip nurses with knowledge and skills in this field. Graduate programs at Master’s and Doctorate levels continue to grow. They provide education, certification, and credentialing to expand the knowledge, skills, and vision required for the nursing informatician of today and tomorrow (Singh & Masango, 2020). In addition, nursing informatics has led to the introduction of informatics in the nursing curricula to teach nursing students to use technology and informatics. This ensures that nursing students acquire the necessary psychomotor skills related to the use of technology hardware and software important in healthcare settings.

Informatics literacy is considered a vital issue in improving nursing evidence-based practice (EBP). Informatics and computer skills are crucial components that support and reinforce the EBP framework. Nurses and other health providers are expected to have high-level information literacy to improve their science-based performance (Abdekhoda & Khezri, 2021). The clinical team particularly nurses who have a crucial role in caring for patients, use informatics to obtain information on the latest changes related to clinical care. They also use informatics to update themselves on the latest clinical information to better patient care.  Health providers use online databases to stay up-to-date on current research and make decisions based on that research, thus increasing the chances of improved health care. To effectively search databases, nurses must have information literacy skills like how to organize information in databases, create and arrange search terms, and create search strategies to obtain high-quality literature in research (Abdekhoda & Khezri, 2021).

Government regulations lay the foundation for the documenting, storing, and use of electronic health information (EHI). Government laws play a key role in enabling health departments to use HIT to optimize systems that use patient information to monitor population health trends and interface with similar HIT systems used by healthcare providers and hospitals (Ramanathan et al., 2018). The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) creates regulations that outline the standards and certification criteria that EHRs must meet to assure health providers and hospitals that the systems they take on can perform various functions (Ramanathan et al., 2018). Thus, this regulation can affect organizational policies on EHR systems since hospitals must comply with and adopt EHR systems that meet the ONC’s regulations. Government regulations like the HITECH Act drive health organizations to adopt security that promotes secure electronic health information exchange.

The rapid development of healthcare technology gives opportunities for innovations to transform healthcare practices. Nurse-led innovation is vital for enhancing workflow. It should be encouraged and backed up by health systems, and academic settings. Nurse informatics brings added value to the innovation space by consistently focusing on patient quality and safety while promoting a high standard of care (Kelley, 2019). With the widespread use of EHR and clinical information system, nurses have been introduced to the change-making process that involves diffusing innovation in healthcare. Nursing informatics innovations are anticipated to enhance the effectiveness, efficiency, safety, timeliness, and patient-centeredness in patient care and improve patients’ access to healthcare services (Kelley, 2019). However, adopting nursing informatics innovations should be guided by evidence and there should be careful deliberation of anticipated and possibly unintended outcomes.

Informatics innovations can be used to develop healthcare systems that help providers to identify potentially harmful treatment or prescription errors, refine retrieval of patient records, and increase the safety of patient information. Informatics innovation can be used to improve documentation, which is a vital part of the nursing profession (Kelley, 2019). Innovations that enable nurses to document a patient’s condition and share the information electronically can enable nurses more effectively manage patent care, and improve the quality of care.

Health informatics innovation can also help to obtain important patient data that can prevent medical errors. For example, innovations in electronic records can provide information about a potential medication interaction or allergy that may not otherwise be immediately evident. Furthermore, informatics innovation can improve the coordination of patient care (Kelley, 2019). This is by enabling providers to incorporate data into their workflow, making them more productive and improving their ability to provide better care.

The nurse informatician has the role of using data to generate knowledge that improves patient care and administrative functioning.   The nurse can access information databases and link the information with patient records to make data-driven decisions about patient care. The information from the databases and patient records can be used to generate knowledge that helps to predict patients at high risk for certain diseases or medical events (Kennedy & Moen, 2018). This can result in precautionary actions and increased screening in the patient population.

For instance, the nurse can use EHRs to access patient data and transform it into knowledge that helps to identify patient disease patterns. This can help identify approaches to increase preventative care and reduce ER visits by directing attention to patients at risk of specific chronic conditions and providing appropriate disease-prevention plans.

Nursing informatics is a specialty that integrates nursing science with information and analytical sciences. The term nursing informatics was first proposed by Scholes and Barber in 1976. In 1992, Nursing Informatics was formally recognized as a nursing specialty by the American Nurses Association. Nurse leaders are required to leverage healthcare technology to improve healthcare goals. Nursing informatics helps administrators to access pertinent patient information to produce actionable insights. Informatics innovations can be used to identify medical errors and improve documentation. Information from databases and patient records can be used to generate knowledge that helps to predict patients at high risk for certain diseases or medical events.

References

}Abdekhoda, M. & Khezri, H. (2021). Investigating the impact of health informatics literacy on the evidence-based practice of nursing. Online Journal of Nursing Informatics (OJNI), 25(2).  https://www.himss.org/resources/online-journal-nursing-informatics

}Al Najjar, R. I., & Shafie, Z. M. (2022). Impact of Nursing Informatics on the Quality of Patient Care. International Journal Of Medical Science And Clinical Research Studies2(5), 418-421. https://doi.org/10.47191/ijmscrs/v2-i5-19

}Asiri, H. (2018, February). An overview of nursing informatics (NI) as a profession: how we evolved over the years. In International Conference on Health Informatics (Vol. 6, pp. 200-212). SCITEPRESS.

Blažun Vošner, H., Carter-Templeton, H., Završnik, J., & Kokol, P. (2020). Nursing Informatics. CIN: Computers, Informatics, Nursing, Publish Ahead of

}Kelley, T. (2019). The emergence of Nursing Innovation Influenced by Advances in Informatics and Health IT. Nurse Leader. doi:10.1016/j.mnl.2019.09.012

}Kennedy, M. A., & Moen, A. (2018). Nurse Leadership and Informatics Competencies: Shaping Transformation of Professional Practice. Studies in health technology and informatics232, 197–206.

}Ramanathan, T., Schmit, C., Menon, A., Sunshine, G., & Pepin, D. (2018). Federal public health laws supporting data use and sharing.

}Singh, F., & Masango, T. (2020). Information technology in nursing education: perspectives of student nurses. The Open Nursing Journal, 14(1). DOI: 10.2174/1874434602014010018