Overview of Computers and Nursing Virginia K. Saba Kathleen A. McCormick

Objectives Introduce nursing informatics (NI) and clinical information systems (CIS). Highlight new technologies and their applications in traditional and new environments of nursing.

Introduction Nurses are becoming computer literate and the nursing profession is implementing practice standards for its clinical care and data standards for its nursing information technology system.

Introduction NI represents the transition of data and data information and knowledge into action. NI represents the practice, administration, community health, nursing education, and nursing research applications. Demonstrate how IT supports nurses to improve quality, ensure safety, measure outcomes and determine costs.

Overview NI is defined by American Nurses Association (ANA, 2001): A specialty that integrates nursing science, computer science, and information science to manage and communicate data, information, and knowledge in nursing practice.

Overview (Cont.. .) Nursing informatics facilitates the integration of data, information, and knowledge to support patients, nurses, and other providers in their decision-making in all roles and settings. This support is accomplished through the use of information structure, information processes, and information technology.

Overview A CIS is designed to support clinical nursing practice. It requires not only an understanding of professional nursing practice process but also technology that is the application for the science to function electronically.

Overview The increased interest in NI occurred because of the concerted efforts of several groups that promoted nursing as an integral part of the EHR systems being implemented in healthcare.

Overview Individual nurses began to demand CIS to document their care, regardless of where they worked and the vendors of the EHR systems began to include nursing care components in their systems.