Nursing Informatics Imagine learning within one's organization that medical records are becoming electronic and additional training is needed. Will one react in a positive or negative manner? How long does it take to implement technology? What current statistics are available in this matter? Nursing-informatics is a growing field of study that deals with ethics, effects of implementation, shaping medical performance, nurse patient communication as well as the advantages and disadvantages in this elucidation.

Nursing informatics is the "integrating the triad of computer, information and nursing sciences" (Nursing-Informatics, 2011). Since the change of technology, management seeks to understand how computers process all the necessary nurse information. This is done through "human processing of data, information, and knowledge within a computer system" (Nursing-Informatics, 2011). In other words, patient information is put into a computer, and it becomes an electronic medical record for medical personnel to access anytime the person is in the office or for billing purposes (Nursing-Informatics, 2011). One cannot avoid this trend, and it is crucial that individuals adapt to it, otherwise he or she will lag behind the others who have already implemented it in their workplace. Through this, nursing duties have changed some in order to acclimatize with it.

The way nurses do their job is quite significant with equipment. In March 2010, the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was signed into law," which paved the way for the Electronic Health Record and the "Healthcare Information and Management Systems" (Nurse Zone, 2011). For example, three areas are worth noting in regards to the HIMSS. One is improve the quality of health care through data collection. Focus in on the rules of operating as well as standards. Over time increase the health workforce for IT (Nurse Zone, 2011). The biggest issue is quality when documenting the data. The government has provided incentives to make everything electronic, especially to those organizations who successfully implement it. Nurses are encouraged to get involved through this process (Nurse Zone, 2011). Additionally, ethics is an issue when it comes to Electronic Health Records (EHR).

One has to consider ethics when working in any field, especially medical. Autonomy is needed for EHR. People should respect patient's independence as well as any decision made about how he or she accesses their information in regards to "content and ownership of the records" (Mercuri, 2010). Anyone should have the ability to change their record with no concerns at all, especially if they want to modify any part of it through challenging those in the healthcare profession. As a result a "higher quality document" will occur because "patients will act as proofreaders of their own health histories" (Mercuri, 2010). The companies that maintain the EHR might want to retain ownership, providers as well as the patient. Justice is worth considering. Since a digital divide currently exists depending on socioeconomic status. Furthermore, by having an EHR, this gap closes; however, patients can get some level of hinderance because of their current income class by not receiving the full benefits from it. Additionally, Beneficence and Non-malfeasance are important with nursing ethics. In other words a person is to "do good and avoid evil" (Mercuri, 2010). For example, by using EHR, the patient should have the ability to have records released to anyone who is doing research. These individuals are to have access to this information as well, especially if it is made public. Patient confidentiality is stressed and evaded as much as possible. If any information is revealed about an individual without his or her consent, then this could cause legal issues. By having good policies in place, this is less likely to occur. A balance is needed on how much is disclosed by the person as well as the facility that has the EHR software in place (Mercuri, 2010)....

Training programs are crucial in helping nurses to do their job effectively.
Employers are required to train nurses in understanding the computer software for EHR. When an individual studies nurse-informatics, he or she is has a better perception about using computers in the healthcare environment. Furthermore, by having strategies in place for teaching others is important because it will increase a person's confidence through this process. For example, some nurse managers prefer "in-house training as part of the continuing education as opposed to full time study" (Wanjuki Kivuti & Chepchirchir, 2011). They also want those who are technical staff to train them, instead of them doing their own learning that is written (Wanjuki Kivuti & Chepchirchir, 2011). However, if a peson wants to do additional preparation by getting a Master's degree or Certificate in Nursing Informatics (Wanjuki Kivuti & Chepchirchir, 2011). Nurses are affected by using technology for patient care.

The effects of modern machinery in regards to patient care is important. On many occassions, nurses feel overwhelmed because they are stuck behind the computer and are unable to spend enough time with their patients. Medication gets delivered at a faster rate. Prescriptions are available online and EHR. One study found that "nurses spend less than half of their time with patients," and that some of their "technology is insufficient" (Medical News Today, 2007). This continues to grow as hospitals continue to become understaffed. 6% is the nationwide trend, which is going to make work difficult for nurses. This is true because not enough individuals are going to nursing school to become registered nurses or licensed practical nurses. Not only that, but not many are treated with dignity and respect in the discipline, so a turnover rate occurs because individuals do not feel valued for their work. As a result, patient care is not at its best because of all the gaps present with various medical companies. Managementn has to change so that people are more motivated in getting into this field to help others become healthy (Mattke, 2010) . Communication is needed to help patients.

In order for patients to receive quality care, they need excellent communication from their nurses who are taking care of them. When it comes to any kind of conversing, three components are worth noting: "a sender, a receiver, and a message" (Anderson, 2011). Trust is a factor in making it effective. For example, nursing staff failed to let each other know that a patient had fallen. Later on, the individual fell again, and this time had an injury. This could have become avoided if dialogue occurred. Another area is our non-verbal body languge, especially since this is eighty-percent. A person has to pay attention to this because it demonstrates how we feel towards our co-workers and patients. Overall, empathy goes much fartther because it shows how much one cares for another. "We are the face of nursing and the face of the facility to our patients and their visitors" (Anderson, 2011). Many will not remember our names, but will definitely recall the kind of treatment they received (Anderson, 2011). One can do this by touching a person's arm in order to reassure them that everything is okay. However, this has to remain professional at all times and not inappropriate (Anderson, 2011).

Many benefits and setbacks are important when it comes to incorporating technology in a patient centered field. The advantages are as follows. A person is able to access their information anywhere, anytime (Nurse Zone, 2011). This allows for less paperwork. Medication reconciliation is available in a quick manner (Nurse Zone, 2011). In regards to the "transfer of care, the nurse will be able to turn care over electronically, making the continuity of care much better" (Nurse Zone, 2011). As a result, quality will continue to improve for both the patient and the nurse. He or she will communicate whether or not they want their information disclosed, and those that are medical personnel will respect them for it by acting in an efficient manner through excellent customer service (Nurse Zone, 2011). This will become a meaningful process for everyone involved, which makes it worth it.

Disadvantages occur when EHR is implemented in a medical setting. "Temporary outages" will cause obstacles when documenting patient care (Mercuri, 2010). Additionally, failures happen when computers do not work at all. Healthcare facilities would need to have a way of backing up the data, so that it recovered and not lost through this process. Management in the medicinal facilities would need to come up with a superb defense system for their computers. However, no invention has occurred. The issue arises patients information becomes available to those that would exploit it. This makes it all the more crucial for "data security" to take place at the highest level possible to protect anyone who handles it on a regular basis (Mercuri, 2010).

Nursing informatics is a growing trend in the United States. The government has provided incentives for any facility that implements it in their work environment. Many ethical and legal issues need resolved before allowing medical personnel to access it to have patient records on it. Patient confidentiality can easily become breached if someone does not have the proper training to handle it in an effective manner. Furthermore, communication from…