My score improved from 35 to 38. I most improved in the areas of ‘participate in evaluation of information systems in practice settings through policy and procedure development’ and ‘use telecommunication technologies to assist in effective communication in a variety of healthcare settings’. We have recently implemented a secure chat system in Epic, so I can instant message providers and it reduces the number of pages i have to send and reduces the time it takes to get the orders I need. This definitely streamlines my work, and makes patient’s happier that they don’t have to wait too long for their medication or whatever need they have.
While I don’t do much with policy and procedure development, I can give feedback on how a new practice or system is working for me. When the secure chat system was first implemented, it was a little over used and not used in the proper way. Some things aren’t appropriate for the chat, like urgent labs or abnormal vitals. I often use it for fyi updates or simple medication requests such as tylenol. I gave feedback on how it was working for me and how I decided what was appropriate to use it for, and that was taken into account when they were defining how to use the chat.
My score improved from a 22 to a 37 and I’m quite surprised that it jumped that much. Coming into this class, I had very little knowledge of the term informatics and taking this class I’m more confident in the field. I’ve been able to access more information about the subject at work and got to know a little more as to what an informatics nurse does each and every day. “Sharing health information, otherwise known as health information exchange (HIE), provides a means to reduce redundant tests, improve quality of care, and improve public confidence”. (Hebda, Hunter, & Czar, 2019)
I’ll be using the information from this class to help improve patient outcomes and increase patient satisfaction. No one likes to get exams or being put in a big machine for no reason. With the help of the health care providers, we’ ’all be able to get these patients quick results with less time waiting and out the door so they can go back to their regular routines,
Hebda, T., Hunter, K., & Czar, P. (2019). Handbook of informatics for nurses & healthcare professionals (6th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson.
Great post, lots of good points! It is so true that no ones like unnecessary testing… patients, clinicians, insurances companies!!! Using evidence is the foundation for nursing science (Hebda et al., 2019). Although prior to this class, we probably all had a good understanding of evidence based practice, now I know I personally feel more confident in how I apply that knowledge. I’m excited to share the things I have learned with my co-workers and to apply it to my practice. I went into this class thinking that I knew a good bit from touching on informatics in other courses, yet I have learned so much! The Milestone projects were very helpful in creating ways to educate patients. As we progress though our careers, I think we will find that the world of technology will continue to grow as an asset to the education we provide. Having taken this course, we will be prepared to embrace the changes and apply them to high quality care.
Good Luck as you continue your BSN journey!
Reference:
Hebda, T., Hunter, K., & Czar, P. (2019). Handbook of informatics for nurses & healthcare professionals (6th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson.