Title: Nursing informatics: The EHR and beyond - American Nurse
Headings: Nursing informatics: The EHR and beyond
Nursing informatics: The EHR and beyond
Informatics nurses increase efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance patients’ lives.
Takeaways:
Background
Healthcare impact
Specialty insight
Clinical experience
Training and education
Roles and responsibilities
Where can you work?
Compensation
Networking and membership
Build a network
The future of informatics nursing
Tanna L. Nelson is a nursing informatics specialist at Texas Health Resources Dallas-Fort Worth and 2018 American Nursing Informatics Association (ANIA) Chapter President. Cheryl D. Parker is a clinical assistant professor and educational technology specialist at the University of Texas at Tyler School of Nursing and 2019 president-elect of the ANIA National Board of Directors.
Selected references
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Content: The American Nurses Association (ANA) defines informatics nursing as the integration of “nursing science with multiple information and analytical sciences to identify, define, manage, and communicate data, information, knowledge, and wisdom in nursing practice.” That definition is accurate, but it doesn’t fully explain the breadth of opportunity that exists for nurses considering an informatics career. This real-world story offers a concrete example: In 2018, the CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Frances Health System in Tyler, Texas, received the Southwest Transplant Alliance (STA) with the Life Champion Partner Gold Award for its organ transplant conversion (88%) and effectiveness (81%) rates. The increased rates were the result of tools the informatics team developed and implemented within the hospital’s electronic health record (EHR). The tools saved nurses about 30 minutes when inputting information and making referrals to STA, which provided them with time to provide better patient care and support. Nursing informatics is broad, accommodates a diverse array of nursing strengths and interests, and impacts virtually every aspect of healthcare where technology integrates with clinical practice, no matter the setting. Nurses who choose informatics as a career expand their reach beyond direct patient care, but they still experience the rewards of helping people and advocating for their profession. Background
The adoption of EHRs in 2004, under President George W. Bush’s strategy and funding to improve patient safety, spurred significant growth in informatics nursing. In 2009, President Barack Obama further advanced the use of EHRs through Medicare and Medicaid incentive programs that reward hospitals and providers who demonstrate meaningful use of EHRs.