NURS FPX 4040 Assessment 1 Nursing Informatics in Health Care

Name

Capella university

NURS-FPX 4040 Managing Health Information and Technology

Prof. Name

Date

Nursing Informatics in Health Care

In today’s rapidly expanding healthcare environment, digital platforms used for patient education can improve health outcomes and increase patient engagement (Kuwabara et al., 2020). This proposal intends to develop a new Nurse Informaticist (NI) role to exploit innovative digital tools, such as patient portals and mobile applications, to improve patient education. This role supports the organization in delivering high-quality, patient-centered care and filling the technological gap.

Nurse Informatics and the Nurse Informaticist 

Nursing informatics is the science and application of nursing and information technology to integrate information, nursing, and healthcare practice with communication technology to enhance healthcare, healthcare, and nursing/health outcomes and promote healthcare quality, efficacy, and effectiveness. It features digital tools, systems, and data analysis to support clinical decision-making, patient education, and operational efficiency (Al Najjar & Shafie, 2022). The ultimate goal is to deliver technology-driven solutions that will improve patient care, promote safety, and optimize the workflow of healthcare teams.

A nurse informaticist (NI) is a clinical nurse specialist informed by information technology who supports the effective use of technology in healthcare settings (American Nurses Association, n.d.). NIs are responsible for designing, implementing, and optimizing systems like electronic health records (EHRs), patient portals, and mobile applications so that they are user-friendly and capable of meeting clinician and patient needs. They also train staff, manage data, and analyze healthcare data to inform decision-making and improve the quality of care through technological innovation.

Nurse Informaticists and Other Health Care Organizations 

NIs have been successfully integrated by healthcare organizations in the United States to improve the quality of services, patient education, and healthcare operations. Cleveland Clinic, for example, is using informatics to adopt robotic process automation (RPA) to increase efficiency and free more time for caregivers focusing on patient care. EHR and other systems use technological integration to streamline manual tasks and improve work speed (Cleveland Clinic, 2024).

On top of that, the clinic has developed an innovative digital way to communicate at-home care for heart failure patients being discharged for patient education and engagement after discharge. To do this, they made an information card that plays pre-recorded audio messages on self-care, which can be replayed and shared with family or caregivers. The purpose was to ensure patients have the information they need for the right care after leaving the hospital (Cleveland Clinic, 2021). These examples show how NIs are critical to filling the gap between science and patient care, ensuring digital tools work, and are also patient-centered, accessible, and effective at improving health outcomes. This helps them provide better patient education to improve health management and overall patient satisfaction.

Impact of Full Nurse Engagement in Healthcare Technology

Nurses engaged in the technological field significantly impact patient care, workflow, and costs. Digital patient education platforms and patient portals that nurses actively implement and use can help ensure patient data is accurate and up to date, facilitating stronger patient decisions and outcomes. A key to the nurses’ involvement with technology is to streamline the processes, reduce errors, and improve communication between care teams, facilitating more efficient care delivery (Javaid et al., 2024). Investing in nurse-driven technology integration is financially beneficial as it will decrease costs by eliminating errors and enhancing patient safety and patient care efficiency. It gives a strong return on investment through better patient satisfaction, reduced readmission rates, and better resource utilization, making it a cost-effective solution for the long term.

Evidence-based Strategies to Safeguard Protected Health Information (PHI) 

NIs and interdisciplinary teams require evidence-based strategies that address privacy security and confidentiality to successfully manage PHI and deliver enhanced patient education through digital platforms. NIs should verify that patient education materials on digital platforms meet HIPAA requirements when using mobile apps or patient portals. Patient access to sensitive data requires secure authentication methods, including multi-element authentication and effective password standards (Suleski et al., 2023). 

Data needs encryption for complete security throughout its transmission and storage periods. The combination of secure cloud services and system log aesthetics enables organizations to track and address unauthorized access attempts or breaches (Mehrtak et al., 2021). Nursing Informatics professionals are essential educators who teach patients and staff members about privacy and security rules. Healthcare providers need training programs that NIs develop to help staff understand the importance of maintaining patient information confidentiality. Following privacy laws can improve patient education and engagement through digital platforms while maintaining patient security and privacy.

Opportunities and Challenges 

The addition of an NI to our organization has many opportunities. The NI can help patient education by developing personalized digital learning resources that are available via patient portals and mobile apps. Patients can learn about their conditions through these digital resources, which provide accurate and interactive information refined to their condition, which assists them with better understanding and engagement in their care (Carini et al., 2021). This NI role can also have workflow benefits for streamlining HER use, shortening documentation time, and improving communication for care teams. Yet challenges may include the need for intensive training or resistance from staff unfamiliar with new technology (Scholkmann, 2021). It may also be difficult initially to allocate funding for technological upgrades and NI position. Ongoing education, leadership support, and open communication will help address these challenges and ensure the transition and role integration are as smooth as possible. 

Interdisciplinary Collaboration 

Effective collaboration with the interdisciplinary team is critical to using technology to improve care outcomes. The NI allows clinical practice and technology to collaborate to create data-driven decisions. For patient education and management of their conditions, they can help develop interactive patient education tools tailored to their needs (Kuwabara et al., 2020). Together, providers can leverage real-time data to close care gaps and track patient progress digitally. Interdisciplinary meetings can be regular and help communication and shared goals in technology adoption. This collaboration enables a patient-centered, coordinated approach that empowers patients and improves workflow efficiency and care quality across the organization.

Summary of Recommendations 

The recommended role of NI for our organization can be summarized as follows: 

• Enhanced Patient Education and Engagement: The NI will develop personalized, interactive educational content that is available through digital platforms. Evidence suggests that digital tools enhance patients’ understanding of care and follow their care plan, improving patient outcomes and satisfaction (Kuwabara et al., 2020).
• Improved Clinical Efficiency: Optimizing digital health tools such as patient portals will help relieve some of the clinical staff’s burden and streamline communication. Cleveland Clinic (2024) provides an example of how nurse-led technology initiatives free up time to provide direct patient care.
• Data-Driven Quality Improvement: The NI will collect and analyze data to identify educational gaps and develop care strategies. These data-driven approaches have resulted in more informed decision-making and better clinical outcomes (Cascini et al., 2021).
• Enhanced Security and Compliance: NI will ensure that proper management of digital health education platforms is implemented under security protocols and staff training using proven practices for protecting PHI.

Conclusion 

In conclusion, patient education through digital platforms would benefit our organization by adding a nurse informaticist specializing in this area. Through this role, patients gain accessible, personalized educational resources while improving clinical efficiency and supporting data-based care decisions. Through their work to connect technology with patient care, the nurse informaticists drive improved health results and greater patient involvement and enhance the organization’s dedication to delivering quality patient-centered healthcare services.

References 

Al Najjar, R. I., & Shafie, Z. M. (2022). Impact of nursing informatics on the quality of patient care. International Journal of Medical Science and Clinical Research Studies, 2(5). https://ijmscr.org/index.php/ijmscrs/article/view/196

American Nurses Association. (n.d.). The scope of nursing informatics practice. https://www.nursingworld.org/~49c602/globalassets/catalog/book-toc/nursing-informatics-3e-sample-chapter.pdf

NURS FPX 4040 Assessment 1 Nursing Informatics in Health Care

Carini, E., Villani, L., Pezzullo, A. M., Gentili, A., Barbara, A., Ricciardi, W., & Boccia, S. (2021). The impact of digital patient portals on health outcomes, system efficiency, and patient attitudes: Updated systematic literature review. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 23(9). https://doi.org/10.2196/26189

Cascini, F., Santaroni, F., Lanzetti, R., Failla, G., Gentili, A., & Ricciardi, W. (2021). Developing a data-driven approach in order to improve the safety and quality of patient care. Frontiers in Public Health, 9(9), 667819. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.667819 

Cleveland Clinic. (2024, March 18). Nursing teams leverage automation to improve workflows, and devote more time to patient care. Consultqd.clevelandclinic.org. https://consultqd.clevelandclinic.org/nursing-teams-leverage-automation-to-improve-workflows-devote-more-time-to-patient-care

Cleveland Clinic. (2021, February 3). Innovative information card helps heart failure patients after discharge. Consultqd.clevelandclinic.org. https://consultqd.clevelandclinic.org/innovative-information-card-helps-heart-failure-patients-after-discharge

Javaid, M., Haleem, A., & Singh, R. P. (2024). Health informatics to enhance the healthcare industry’s culture: An extensive analysis of its features, contributions, applications and limitations. Informatics and Health, 1(2), 123–148. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.infoh.2024.05.001 

NURS FPX 4040 Assessment 1 Nursing Informatics in Health Care

Kuwabara, A., Su, S., & Krauss, J. (2020). Utilizing digital health technologies for patient education in lifestyle medicine. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, 14(2), 137–142. https://doi.org/10.1177/1559827619892547

Mehrtak, M., SeyedAlinaghi, S., MohsseniPour, M., Noori, T., Karimi, A., Shamsabadi, A., Heydari, M., Barzegary, A., Mirzapour, P., Soleymanzadeh, M., Vahedi, F., Mehraeen, E., & Dadras, O. (2021). Security challenges and solutions using healthcare cloud computing. Journal of Medicine and Life, 14(4), 448–461. NCBI. https://doi.org/10.25122/jml-2021-0100

Scholkmann, A. B. (2021). Resistance to (digital) change. Digital Transformation of Learning Organizations, 219–236. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55878-9_13 

Suleski, T., Ahmed, M., Yang, W., & Wang, E. (2023). A review of multi-factor authentication in the internet of healthcare things. Digital Health, 9(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/20552076231177144