How Nursing Informatics can Benefit Society

1. Define Nursing Informatics and why it is important to us as nurses?

Nursing informatics is the integration of established nursing techniques and procedures with those of technology and data analytics. Technology is quickly becoming a much more comprehensive solution to many of the problems associated with healthcare services. The recent COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated many of these issues related to service. Here, research has shown the healthcare customers often experience exorbitant delays related to routine tasks and appointments. Likewise, healthcare systems are often error prone due to their overall reliance on manual processes and procedures. These errors can be costly as corrections can have adverse impacts on the overall timeliness and quality of service.

With nursing informatics, many of these issues will be mitigate through a much more comprehensive and robust method of servicing clients. For example, electronic medical records, telehealth, and telemedicine are all innovations that provide a much more convenient solution to clients while also lower many of the common errors that occur within the healthcare system. For example through telehealth, cancelations are severely reduced as routine service can be provided in a digital format from the convenience of the customers home. Here the healthcare professional can provide comprehensive services while the client receives a solution that doesn’t require a large commute or waiting time within the facility. The same benefits occur with the overall handling of sensitive healthcare information on behalf of clients. Through nursing informatics, critical information can be securely reviewed and transferred between nursing professional. In addition, update can occur that are much more seamless and are less error prone. This ultimately enables the customer to be serviced more efficiently while also enhancing the overall healthcare experience (Ball, 2015).

2. Discuss the rapid growth of computer systems, why are there benefits of keeping current trends and developments?

The rapid growth of computer systems is a reflection of the overall societal need for efficiencies and cost reductions within the healthcare industry. From a macroeconomic perspective, healthcare expenditures account for roughly 18% of the United States GDP. According to experts, this figure is expected to rise to 20% of GDP by the year 2030. The amount of dollars spent on healthcare is the highest in all of the developed world. Likewise the overall healthcare outcomes from these expenditures is the lower in the developed world. Many nations around the world not only spend less on healthcare, but also have much better outcomes as it relates to their treatment processes. With nearly 1 out of every 5 dollars in the United States economy being spent on healthcare expenditures, it is important for society to not only reduce these expenditures but also to improve outcomes for society. This ultimately will help improve the productive output of the nation, reduce absenteeism, and lower dependency on certain drugs and medical treatment (Bandura, 2022).

The growth in computer systems helps to address, and in some cases alleviate these concerns. Computer systems help to lower healthcare costs through improve efficiencies and less processing errors. Likewise computer systems help to provide ancillary services that can help supplement the traditional product offerings provided by healthcare facilities. As noted above these services include the use of digital platforms to provide healthcare treatment advice or to provide routine tasks. The benefits from these innovations helps to improve outcomes for society while also lower societies reliance of drugs and medical treatments. This ultimately helps to improve the overall outcomes of society.

3. Discuss advantages such as error prevention, and challenges of Information Science (IS) such as a breach of confidentiality and hackers.

The benefits of error prevention were discussed in detail above. To summarize the observations discussed, error prevention is a welcomed benefit to the healthcare industry overall. Errors, particularly with processing can become very problematic, causing servicing delays for clients and customers. These servicing delays can have rippling impacts on society as customers must endure longer wait times, rushed services, and a low-quality experience. Likewise, errors can create rising costs, the recommendation of unneeded services, and unnecessary treatments that increase costs for the consumer.

Error’s also have a psychological impact on the consumer. Here, healthcare is often perceived as a mechanism of helps and assistance in an often-uncertain world, as reinforced by COVID-19. However, errors, particularly blatant ones, often undermine the integrity of the healthcare system within a consumers mind. This is exacerbated within minority communities, which have a had a long and arduous history of healthcare abuses impacting their respective communities. Errors often enhance this mistrust and harm the overall belief in healthcare products and services. This has manifesting itself in vaccination rates, as many minorities are simply skeptical of the merits behind the vaccine as it relates to their specific needs. By preventing these errors, the industry as a whole can better alleviate these concerns and instill confidence in the system as a whole. This confidence can help society as more individuals are able to participate in the system. More data is collected that can ultimately be used to further enhance services. Likewise, a healthier population will be much more productivity, thereby creating more goods and services for society overall.

4. Describe 2 examples of healthcare informatics and implications for nursing.

One example of healthcare informatics is that of electronic medical records. This is often cited as the most common healthcare informatics innovation as its benefits for the nursing profession of wide ranging. The first, and often most obvious benefit for the nursing profession is efficiency. EMR’s provide an efficient and comprehensive method of obtaining, reviewing, and updating the medical records of patients. These records can seamless be transferred in a secure manner, ensuring that healthcare professionals have the most up to date records for the individuals. This improves treatment options along with the ability to provide services that improve the overall patient outcome

The second example of healthcare informatics is telehealth. As the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated, telehealth can provide a very strong alternative to physical in-office services. This is particularly helpful when the overall healthcare infrastructure is overwhelmed or near capacity. Telehealth allows individuals to receive healthcare services from the comfort of their home or in another remote location. This innovation benefits the nursing profession by providing an efficient method of interacting with clients for routine services and checkups. This innovation can lower cancellations, improve internal processing, and increase service times within the facility. This in turn, reduces in-office delays due to appointments running over or cancellations (Bannon, 2016).