In the 2008 ANA Scope
and Standards, you will find NI defined as “ Nursing informatics (NI)
integrates nursing science, computer and information science, and cognitive
science to manage, communicate, and expand the data, information, knowledge,
and wisdom of nursing practice. Nurses trained in NI support improved patient outcomes
through their expertise in information processes, structures, and technologies,
thus helping nurses and other care providers to create and record the evidence
of their practice” (ANA, 2008). As an
Informatics Nurse Specialist (INS), I do much more than support patient
outcomes through my expertise in information processes, structure, and
technologies. The industry has also recognized
that it may be time to revise the current definition. In the proposed revision, the definition
evolves to “Nursing informatics (NI) is a specialty that integrates nursing
science with multiple information management and analytical sciences to
identify, define, manage, and communicate data, information, knowledge, and
wisdom in nursing practice. NI supports consumers, patients, nurses, and other
healthcare professionals in their decision-making in all roles and settings to
achieve desired outcomes. This support is accomplished through the use of
information structures, information processes, and information technology” (ANA,
2013).
This evolution fits with
the concept of nurses as knowledge workers. As nurses, INSs do not simply have
expertise in data and information processes. Data capture, management, processing,
retrieval, storage and the like are really our tools. Just like any profession, the tools used do
not define a person’s responsibility or contribution. Rather, it is the outcome. In nursing, our contribution
cannot be measured by how much data we capture or how we process it. It is how
we use that data and what we learn from it that will move us forward.
For this reason, I think
of INSs and nurses alike as being knowledge workers. A Knowledge
worker is someone who advances the overall understanding of a subject through
focused analysis, design, and/or development (Tripathi, 2010). They use
research skills to define problems and to identify alternatives. This process creates
a culture of integrated knowledge management. As INSs, we provide information while
thinking about clinical care delivery and ways to expand our knowing in
nursing. We establish competencies and practice standards which we apply to nursing
care delivery. New technologies allow easier
data capture and analysis. We leverage this to transform nursing practice
through better sharing and management of knowledge at the point of care
delivery and create a generation of new understanding about nurse’s
contribution to clinical outcomes. In
short, it is what we know that matters.
Reference:
Tripathi, K. P. (2010). An Empirical
Study of Managing Knowledge Workers. International
journal of computer application 12:7 December 2010 Retrieved 1/25/13 from http://www.ijcaonline.org/volume12/number7/pxc3872255.pdf
