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 h
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