The Role of the Nurse Informaticist in Systems Development and Implementation

The Role of the Nurse Informaticist in Systems Development and Implementation

Introduction

Nurses have distinct roles and responsibilities in providing the best possible care to their patients. Information is critical in assisting nurses in making informed healthcare delivery decisions. As a result, the ease with which nurses can access critical information determines how effectively they can care for their patients. The implementation of Health Information Technology is one area that has a significant impact on healthcare information.

Nurses continue to use health information technology to improve patient care, improve care coordination, make patient information more accessible, and increase efficiency (Cherry & Jacob, 2016). Nurses play critical roles in the system development life cycle when introducing new information systems in healthcare organizations (SDLC). This is due to the fact that they are at the heart of system utilization and, thus, patient care (Wager et al., 2017). A nurse leader is required on the implementation team when a new documentation system is introduced to the organization. This paper provides a role description for a graduate nurse to use as a guide for his or her participation in the documentation system implementation team. The role description is presented in relation to the SDLC steps.

Role description

Planning and specification of requirements

The scope of the current system is analyzed during the planning and requirements definition phase, and an overview of the new system and its objectives is determined. Cost, time, benefits, and other aspects of the system are all taken into account (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2015). Furthermore, the system’s constraints, threats, and security issues are taken into account.

During this stage, the graduate-level nurse can take on a variety of roles. First, the nurse must collaborate with the interdisciplinary team to determine the system’s technical, clinical, and medical requirements. Furthermore, the graduate nurse can assist in system testing and identifying any design flaws in the new system for future improvement. Essentially, the graduate nurse’s role is to bring to the forefront the concerns of the frontline nurse so that the system can be tailored to assist them in dealing with system challenges.

Phase of investigation

The interdisciplinary team working on the new system considers its functional requirements during the analysis phase. End-user requirements are assessed to ensure that the system meets their expectations. The new system’s requirements and prototype have been defined.

During the analysis stage, the graduate nurse plays an important role in assisting the interdisciplinary team in identifying the critical challenges that the system may pose to the nurse as the end-user and suggesting feasible solutions or asking for alternatives from the other team members (Kuziemsky, 2015). The graduate nurse must anticipate how the system will be used and what challenges may arise so that he or she can make informed suggestions or alternatives to the team. This way, the team can avoid sending a system with obvious flaws to the workplace.

The new system’s design

The databases, applications, systems, and user interfaces that will be used in the new system are defined during the system design. These are the functional elements that will ensure the system’s smooth operation (Kuziemsky, 2015).

The graduate nurse’s role at this stage may be limited due to the technical nature of the stage, but he or she can still suggest specific operational mechanisms that would improve the system’s functioning. The graduate nurse’s role is to ensure that the system design makes it easier and safer for nurses to use. It is the graduate nurse’s responsibility to determine the system’s usability in meeting the informational needs of nurses.

Implementation

The majority of the program’s system coding is completed during the implementation phase, and the system is put into production. Data and components are moved from the old to the new system. The system is then installed and made available to end users. The graduate nurse collaborates with the interdisciplinary team working on the system to evaluate system performance and identify opportunities for redesigning where the evaluation process suggests it. Furthermore, the nurse should assist in educating and training other nurses and staff members on the new system’s implementation.

Post-implementation assistance

At this stage, the emphasis is on system maintenance and user and administrator support, which is an ongoing process. This is done to ensure that the system continues to function normally. The end-user is important in this phase because they can help fine-tune it by adding new capabilities to improve performance (Magnuson & Dixon, 2020). A support team resolves residual system errors and other issues that may arise during its use.

During this phase, the graduate nurse is responsible for documenting all issues encountered and forwarding them to system developers and managers for consideration in system upgrades.

Conclusion

As can be seen from the foregoing, a graduate nurse serving as a leader on a system implementation team can play an important role in the system development life cycle. From the planning phase to the post-implementation phase, the graduate nurse can assist in making the system even more user-friendly for nurses.

References

Cherry, B., & Jacob, S. R. (2016). Contemporary nursing: Issues, trends, & management. Elsevier Health Sciences.

Kuziemsky, C. E. (2015). A model of tradeoffs for understanding health information technology implementation. Stud Health Technol Inform, 215, 116-28.

Magnuson, J. A., & Dixon, B. E. (Eds.). (2020). Public health informatics and information systems. Springer Nature.

McGonigle, D., & Mastrian, K. G. (Eds.). (2015). Nursing informatics and the foundation of knowledge. Jones & Bartlett Publishers.

Wager, K. A., Lee, F. W., & Glaser, J. P. (2017). Health care information systems: a practical approach for health care management. John Wiley & Sons.

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Purpose of Assignment:

According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (2008), “Scholarship for the baccalaureate graduate involves recognizing the role of information technology in improving patient care outcomes and creating a safe care environment.”

American Association of College of Nursing. (2008). The Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice. Retrieved from: https://www.aacnnursing.org/Education-Resources/AACN-Essentials

Course Competency:

Evaluate the role and scope of practice for nursing informatics.

Content:
Scenario
You are a registered nurse employed at the local hospital working in the education department. You have been asked to prepare a digital poster presentation for the local University’s Nursing Student Association’s Annual Conference next week. They have asked you to showcase a specialty in the nursing profession that has changed healthcare delivery and patient outcomes. Your supervisor suggested showcasing the various roles and scope of practice for nursing informatics as it is often not as prevalent to student nurses, as other specialties.

Instructions

You have started your digital poster presentation and sifting through the multitude of resources to support this specialty. You are carefully showcasing this profession geared for students at the baccalaureate level since that is the intended audience. You have chosen to create an infographic (i.e. Visme, Snappa, Google charts, Piktochart) as it leverages the NI profession perfectly. Specifically, the presentation guidelines require the infographic to include the following elements:

• • Identify various roles of nursing informatics.
  • Describe specific settings within your community where nursing informatics could be used
  • Identify two Nursing Informatics organizations or journals to provide attendees with more information.
  • Explain how the building blocks of Nursing Informatics prepare nurses for practice
  • Examine defining characteristics from the scope of practice for nursing informatics
  • Describe the educational requirements for the role
  • Analyze the impact nurse informatics has had on healthcare delivery.
  • How has it specifically impacted patient outcomes?
  • Describe the future of Nursing Informatics and its impact on healthcare delivery.
  • Format:
  • Standard American English (correct grammar, punctuation, etc.)
  • Logical, original, and insightful
  • Professional organization, style, and mechanics in APA format
  • Submit document through Grammarly to correct errors before submission

Resources:

• • For assistance in creating an infographic, please visit the Rasmussen College Answers page.
  • For assistance in creating a professional poster presentation, please visit the Rasmussen College Answers page
  • For additional research assistance, please visit the How can I make a Research Appointment with a Rasmussen College Librarian?

For additional APA assistance, please visit the Rasmussen APA Guide.