About

➀ Read and Learn

The following course content

Introduction   

When hearing the phrase nursing informatics, what comes to mind? Whether you’re new to nursing or have been a nurse for many years, nursing informatics is a booming field with lots of potential for nurses from all specialties and educational backgrounds. As technology continues to evolve, so does the world of nursing, including nursing informatics. The information in this course will serve as a valuable resource for nurses interested in learning more about nursing informatics. 

Defining Nursing Informatics 

What Is Nursing Informatics? 

Nursing informatics is a fast-growing and ever-expanding nursing career option. In fact, despite rapid advances in technology in the past decade, nursing informatics did not appear until recently. Thirty years ago, in 1994, nursing informatics was formally recognized as a nursing specialty by the American Nurses Association (ANA) (1). A nurse informaticist, also known as an informatics nurse, is a nurse who works at the intersections of data, technology, health care, nursing, and patient care. Because nursing informatics is such a wide nursing career path, there are many nursing informatics career options, such as clinical informatics analysts, managerial roles, consulting opportunities, nursing research, health care informatics opportunities, and more (1).  

At its core, nursing informatics involves data presentation, integration, and communication into several technological information systems. Nursing informatics takes data points involved in various aspects of nursing care. Nursing informaticists use this data among healthcare leadership and staff to make critical decisions on technology, patient care, and more within healthcare systems. Health care thrives with nursing informatics, as nursing informatics helps set the stage for nursing care for patients, nurses, and other people involved in patient care (1).  

How and Where Are Nursing Informatics Used? 

Almost every healthcare organization and system in America uses some form of technology, meaning the demand for nursing informatics is limitless. While there might be formal career titles in nursing informatics, nursing informatics roles are everywhere. Nursing informatics work is used in patient care monitoring, electronic health records (EHRs), data management, clinical safety measurements, evidence-based research, executive planning, and more. The extent of nursing informatics can truly vary depending on the technology used within a place of work, as some health care organizations are more technologically progressive than others. That said, nursing informatics are used anywhere nursing care exists, as nursing informatics can assess changes, provide insights into care delivery, and display the realities for both caregiving and caregiver outcomes (1,2).  

What Educational Requirements Are Needed to Work in Nursing Informatics?  

Informatics nurses can be any nurses of any licensure or educational background ranging from licensed practical nurses (LPNs) to advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs). Over the past decade, more places of employment are often seeking informatics nurses with at least an associate degree or bachelor’s degree in nursing.  

In addition to a nursing degree, some nurses interested in nursing informatics might pursue additional degrees in health informatics, information technology, or nursing research. Some nurses also look into an Informatics Nursing certification (NI-BCTM) through the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ACNN) (3). However, it is important to note that several nurses are working in nursing informatics without additional formal education or certification.  

It is also important to note that many nurse informaticists will have at least some hands-on patient-care nursing experience before working in nursing informatics. That said, nursing is a career with several career paths, especially in the age of artificial intelligence (AI), telemedicine, and remote patient monitoring. Like education and career paths, consider doing your research into various nursing informatics careers near you if this is a path you are interested in.  

Furthermore, every workplace has different requirements for nurses interested in nursing informatics careers. For instance, some workplaces prefer on-the-job training instead of additional formalized education. Consider doing your research into nursing informatics before deciding to go back to school if this is a career path you are interested in. Plus, given the scope of work for nurses in general, nurses often learn several aspects of healthcare technology when providing direct patient care (3,4). 

Nursing Informatics Landscape 

The Nursing Informatics Job Market 

Like nursing careers in general, salary varies by state, such as California or Arkansas, and place of employment, such as large healthcare organizations or private practices. Like other nursing career paths, nurses with more experience tend to have a higher salary than nurses without experience. It is important to understand that average salaries can vary depending on prior nursing experience, work location, qualifications, and place of employment (5).  

In addition to salary, with the rise of AI, telemedicine, remote patient monitoring, and other aspects of virtual nursing care, nursing informatics is expected to increase in demand in various companies and across various employment sectors as well (4,5). Possible places of employment for informatics nurses include universities, hospitals, private practices, clinical research facilities, telehealth companies, pharmaceutical companies, the military, healthcare organizations, and more. This is not an exhaustive list by any means, as new companies and places are hiring nursing informaticists, such as larger technology companies as well.  

The Nursing Informatics Scope of Work 

People often think that nurse informaticists do behind-the-scenes technology work 24/7. While technology is a major part of the job, expected workloads and job duties can vary depending on the full job description. Some common tasks associated with informatics nursing include: (1) identifying a health care organization’s technology needs, such as cybersecurity, EHR, or remote patient monitoring needs; (2) making sure that data transmitted via a healthcare system is compliant with HIPPA and other pertinent regulations; (3), ensuring information transmitted electronically is medically accurate and evidence-based; (4) working with non-clinical and clinical staff on gaps in technology quality improvement; (5) evaluating technological processes and systems for health care delivery and sustainability; (6) providing a nursing point-of-view for health care technology and infrastructure; and (7) observing the latest trends in health care technology (1,2,4,5). 

That was quite the list, but that is not 100% of the tasks for nurses working in informatics. In fact, that’s just the tip of the iceberg, especially as more nurses work closely with AI and for nurses in leadership roles. Depending on the job itself, some informatics nurses also still provide direct patient care. It is also important to remember that the scope of work for an informatics nurse mostly depends on that nurse’s education, training, qualifications, nursing regulations, and workplace practices (1,2,4,5).  

Nursing Informatics and Healthcare 

Nursing informatics and healthcare is a major topic presently in several technology, health care, and business spaces, as nurses are often at the forefront of patient care delivery. As a result, nurses are predicted to lead innovation as health care and technology become more synchronized in our ever-evolving world. While there are many hiccups in modern-day patient care, documentation, and technology, it is expected that nurses will play a critical role in changing health informatics for the better. Many nurses look forward to better use of technology in patient care and job performance, especially the role of AI. That said, many nurses are also concerned about the ethical and legal implications of AI and other rapidly evolving technologies in health care. Knowing this, many healthcare organizations are considering further developing training opportunities for nurses to be better equipped with AI and other technologies in the workplace (1,5).  

Technology is not going away in healthcare anytime soon, and many healthcare organizations are well aware that nurses interact with technology on several levels of patient care.  

Informatics nurses are leading innovation for a future where exciting technologies work together for clinical and non-clinical audiences, making health care more accessible and informative for everyone involved.  

Nursing Informatics Alternative Career Paths 

While there is a growing demand for informatics nurses, there are also several career paths similar to nursing informatics. If you are interested in data, technology, and nursing, but not sure if nursing informatics is for you, you can consider the following alternative nursing career paths: (1) virtual nurse educator; (2) nurse data consultant; (3) quality improvement nursing manager; (4) nurse analyst; or (5) EHR quality reassurance analyst. 

Nursing Considerations 

What Is the Nurses’ Role in Nursing Informatics? 

Nurses remain the most trusted profession for a reason, and nurses are often pillars of patient care in several healthcare settings. Patients turn to nurses for guidance, education, and support. While there are no specific guidelines for the nurses’ role in informatics education and management, here are some suggestions to provide quality care for patients with their technological needs. 

• Know where your devices are at all times. Oftentimes, with patient care, especially in hectic care settings, you can lose sight of your work computer, personal phone, work phone, and more. With hundreds of people in and out of hospitals and other healthcare places every hour, consider adding a Find Your Device option to every device you bring to work.  

• If you bring your personal laptop or personal phone to work, consider locking them in a locker when not in use. If you lose any of your devices, contact your organization’s information technology (IT) department and law enforcement immediately. Likewise, if a patient suspects that they have lost a device, make sure you follow organizational protocol. 

• Be aware of your surroundings. Things can move very fast in health care, and technology is no exception. If you notice that someone is asking for information from a patient and they are not affiliated with their care team, consider reaching out to your supervisor or IT department. 

• Stay up to date with the latest training on nursing informatics and healthcare technology from your organization and continue nursing education if applicable.  

• When documenting, make sure you review your EHR with every patient. Charts can look similar, so make sure you are charting and documenting the correct patient when you are caring for them. As you chart and use EHRs, note any technical hiccups or things you’d like to change or address with your tech support team.  

• Be willing to answer questions about health information and data privacy with patients, especially if they have Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) concerns.  

• Communicate the care plan to other staff involved for continuity of care electronically and physically. Assess how comfortable you, other clinical staff, and patients feel with the existing electronic communication means. 

How can nurses identify if they are interested in a career in nursing informatics?  

With the rise of more nurses working remotely and interested in career options outside of a traditional bedside setting, the sky is the limit. You might be interested in nursing informatics if you like technology, numbers, people, and data. If you think you are interested in a career in nursing informatics, doing your research and assessing the job market are great starting points to see if this is a career path for you. 

Remember, like all nurses, informatics nurses are everywhere and do several tasks! Informatics nurses are frequently depicted as tech-savvy nurses, but there is more to nursing informatics than technology alone. While informatics nurses love tech, these nurses in particular are the true bridge between nursing and technology.  

Unfortunately, almost every nurse can discuss (often at great length) issues with EHRs, password changes, employment badge issues, and more. That is where nurse informaticists come in and can change health care for the better. By bringing in a nursing lens and a technology focus, informatics nurses lead the way for nurses in health care technology.  

If you are considering being an informatics nurse, I would recommend that you ask yourself if you truly are passionate about data, collaboration, technology, nursing, and education. 

What should patients know about nursing informatics?  

Patients should know that technology is rapidly changing, and that this change is here to stay. Patients should be aware of digital safety protocols for themselves and when accessing their EHRs online. Here are important tips for patient education in the inpatient or outpatient setting.  

• Tell the healthcare provider of any issues regarding inappropriate communication or tech issues with EHRs (could be a sign of phishing or cybercrimes) 

• Never access medical records from an unsecured device, such as a computer in a public library 

• Never share passwords with anyone 

• Keep your devices, including apps, updated 

• Never post personal information online, including your contact information 

Upcoming Research 

What Nursing Informatics Research Exists Presently? 

There is extensive publicly available literature on nursing informatics via evidence-based journals and in nursing research. 

Case Study #1 

Susan is a 32-year-old woman working as a postpartum nurse. She has worked in postpartum nursing for seven years and enjoys educating her new moms with their babies. After doing her morning rounds, she receives an email regarding a collaboration meeting with hospital leadership and web developers. The email says that all nurses are welcome to attend this meeting as well.  

In between her patients, Susan wonders if she should attend this meeting in a few weeks. She often hears her co-workers complain about issues documenting, and she also hears about patients having issues accessing their medical records to send to healthcare providers before discharge. Susan enjoys patient care, and she also wants to be able to chart more easily and spend less time dealing with technology problems at work.  

Case Study #1 Continued 

Susan is almost done with her shift when one of her co-workers asks for help entering something in a patient’s chart. Susan goes to help her co-worker, and Susan sees that there is an error in the documentation process on the EHR’s end. The EHR will not let Susan’s co-worker enter an important note about this patient, so Susan recommends doing a chart edit for documentation compliance.  

A patient care note was added to the EHR, but it was unnecessary and could have been avoided if the EHR had been more aware of the nuances in postpartum nursing care. Susan has been noticing some issues with documenting with this new EHR update for the past few months, and she wonders if attending that meeting would be worth it.  

Case Study #1 Continued 

A few weeks later, Susan attends the meeting with hospital leadership and the technology support team from the existing EHR software company. Susan expresses her concerns that there are several times when she and her co-workers want to document certain aspects of patient care for postpartum nursing that are not adequately placed in the new EHR. Susan also explains there are times when patients request medical records, and patients are left frustrated by being unable to see their records easily before hospital discharge. These concerns are heard by the leadership and technology teams, and they are very impressed with Susan’s insights into EHR and patient care. There are no nurses on the team presently, and they ask Susan if she would like to serve as a nursing informatics consultant part-time in addition to her work as a postpartum nurse.   

Conclusion

Technology is here to stay, and nurses are at the forefront of this change. While many people are hesitant to try new technology, nurses often experience technological shifts every few months in the workplace. New charting systems, documentation policies, workplace regulations, legal policy changes, and more are integral parts of health care delivery and patient care. Given the role of technology in health care, it is essential to recognize the work nurses do with nursing informatics in leading innovation.  

➁ Complete Survey

Give us your thoughts and feedback

➂ Click Complete

To receive your certificate