Advantages Of Informatics In Healthcare

Running Head: ADVANTAGES OF INFORMATICS IN HEALTHCARE 1

Advantages of Informatics in Healthcare

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ADVANTAGES OF INFORMATICS IN HEALTHCARE 2

Advantages of Informatics in Healthcare

The advancement of technology has mandated all industries to invest in new ways of

operation, and for nurses, informatics has proven effective in transforming the healthcare

operations. Informatics in healthcare can be defined as the technical knowhow that combines

nursing, computer, and analytical sciences to manage, communicate, and identify data, wisdom,

and knowledge in nursing practice (American Nurse Association, 2015). Healthcare

organizations are assimilating technology in everyday activities at a quick pace. Nursing

informatics is used in a wide range of operations in the healthcare industry ranging from record

keeping to treatment functions. Healthcare organizations have invested in educational programs

that help nurses to become qualified informatics personnel (Darvish et al., 2014). Additionally,

the industry has set up standards of competency that healthcare personnel must meet in relation

to informatics to ensure the privacy and security of the patients. The combination of informatics

with evidence-based practice has numerous advantages, namely patient satisfaction, nurse

productivity, improved quality of care, easy workload management, and effective decision

making among others. Each of these potential benefits of informatics in healthcare will be

discussed throughout the paper.

The advantages of informatics to the patients are indisputable. Healthcare organizations

exist to serve the public and ensure the satisfaction of patients. The application of technology to

knowledge helps nurses and other practitioners to interpret data in a more effective way thus

ensuring the satisfaction of patients. With the technological resources provided, practitioners are

able to detect changes in patient conditions early and act accordingly (Werder, 2015). For

instance, a nurse is able to note any changes in patients with ease because the data is readily

available. Vital signs are catalogued and assessed regularly to ensure that the needed care is

ADVANTAGES OF INFORMATICS IN HEALTHCARE 3

provided at the right time. In addition, the availability of documented analysis of the patient

allows nurses and other practitioners to spend more time formulating ideal treatments for the

clients instead of tracking data. With the use of informatics in healthcare, the rate of errors is

reduced and practitioners are able to handle critical conditions immediately (Darvish et al.,

2014). Patients do not have to visit different departments within an institution, if nurses are well

equipped with technical knowhow.

One of the major problems associated with public healthcare is the delays in service

delivery. Health informatics eliminates this problem by ensuring that test results can be viewed

once they are carried out. The accessibility of the results allows nurses to provide the needed

care immediately leading to high levels of customer satisfaction (American Nurse Association,

2015). To the patient, the accessibility of the results prevents unnecessary trips to the hospital

and delayed treatment that can have detrimental implications. As such, health informatics help in

reducing the mortality rate, reducing the cost of care associated with simple mistakes occurring

in hospitals and improving the quality of care. Patients trust their nurses to provide the best

possible care and health informatics helps practitioners to meet these expectations leading to

high levels of patient satisfaction.

The nurse-patient ratio possesses a great challenge to the healthcare today. The demand

for care is too high yet only few nurses are available to handle this enormous workload. Health

informatics has come as a relief to healthcare organizations in this regard. With the use of

technology, nurses are able to save time and handle multiple cases without risking burnout or

clinical errors. Informatics has not only bridged the gap between research and technology, but

has also brought growth in the nursing career by introducing a new language that can be used to

document vital information with ease (Werder, 2015). Informatics nurses can analyze and

ADVANTAGES OF INFORMATICS IN HEALTHCARE 4

interpret this data easily and offer the required services without experiencing the backlog caused

by the antique way of information keeping. Additionally, informatics allows nurses to review

research with ease thus enhancing evidence-based practices aimed at career improvement and

customer satisfaction. The application of different kinds of informatics in healthcare ensures that

nurses can interpret physician’s notes easily (American Nurse Association, 2015). Moreover, the

time wasted transcribing doctors notes can be used to serve other patients within the

organization. Informatics has also saved nurses from the tedious work of making follow up calls

to confirm physician orders. With the availability of data, nurses can provide critical care

immediately at any location of the institution thus leading to career satisfaction and customer

fulfillment.

The area of informatics in healthcare is growing at a fast rate and there is a need to

constantly equip nurses with the new skills to meet the required standards (Darvish et al., 2014).

As such, informatics provides job security and career development opportunities to practitioners.

In the past, organizations required IT personnel at different stations to help nurses interpret

technological information, which threatened the job security of nurses. However, with the

availability of informatics training, nurses have become more secure in their jobs because they

can perform both the nursing and the IT expert roles. Organizations investing in informatics cut

down on cost of operation by reducing the number of workforce required. Today, nurses are

tech-savvy and the need for an IT expert at healthcare facilities is diminishing (Darvish et al.,

2014). Technical knowhow for nurses helps to reduce clinical errors and ensure patients are

given the right kind of treatment. Informatics smoothen communication between nurses and

doctors thus reducing the level of conflict between these two groups at the workstation.

Communication between nurses and patients is also made easy through informatics. Informatics

ADVANTAGES OF INFORMATICS IN HEALTHCARE 5

makes it possible for nurses and other practitioners to monitor patient’s progress closely even

when they are away from the institution.

Informatics in healthcare enhances the decision-making process for practitioners.

Technology ensures that information is readily available thus making it easy for clinicians to

make the right choices in regards to care and other organizational matters (Werder, 2015). For

instance, nurses are required to make difficult decisions during their practice and informatics has

helped to lessen this burden by guaranteeing that all the available options are well documented.

Nurses at the management levels also benefit from informatics in tracking the progress of the

organization and the scrutiny of important factors such as return on investment analysis.

Healthcare organizations must be profitable to remain operational. Therefore, the management

team can take advantage of informatics in healthcare to guarantee effective resource

management.

Informatics has brought great transformation in the healthcare industry and the benefits

associated with the application of technology to knowledge in clinical care are undeniable. Every

stakeholder in the healthcare industry is a beneficiary of the application of informatics in the

industry. Practitioners achieve career satisfaction and security, patients gain quality care and

satisfaction, and the management team is able to track the progress of the organization with the

availability of informatics in healthcare. However, to keep up with the rapidly growing area of

informatics, the industry must ensure that constant training is offered to the practitioners to

match the requirements of different programs.

ADVANTAGES OF INFORMATICS IN HEALTHCARE 6

References

American Nurse Association. (2015). Nursing informatics: scope and standards of practice.

Silver Spring, Maryland: American Nurses Association.

Darvish, A., Bahramnezhad, F., Keyhanian, S., & Navidhamidi, M. (2014). The Role of Nursing

Informatics on Promoting Quality of Health Care and the Need for Appropriate

Education. Global Journal of Health Science, 6 (6), 11–18.

Werder, M. (2015). Health Information Technology: A Key Ingredient of the Patient Experience.

Patient Experience Journal, 2 (1), 143-147.

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