Introduction
When designing products for use in health institutions, giving consideration to the end-user is imperative. The consideration of factors such as ergonomics, comfort, and whether an intervention strategy can lead to patients’ maltreatment is crucial during the designing stage. Nursing informatics requires knowledge concerning patients’ needs and ensuring that the instruments are used to address their requirements effectively. Besides, they should understand the difference between needs and wants and ensure that strategies are put in place to attend to both of them effectively. Nursing informatics ought to ensure that information technologies in hospitals address the needs of both patients and nurses to improve the former’ outcomes.
Finding a Balance between Wants and Needs
One of the nursing informatics’ primary responsibilities is to ensure that they find a perfect and functional balance between wants and needs. According to Williams (2015), nursing needs are the essential medical services for the treatment and management of diseases, while wants are the aspects that improve the quality of life through comfort. Both of them are necessary for positive patient outcomes. However, it is also crucial for the nurse to understand the difference between them and prioritize when necessary.
The IT department has needs and wants which should be given priority because they are essential for communication. This department’s necessities are mostly concerned with computer hardware and software facilitates communication and store crucial patient information. In addition, the department’s wants are related to the cooperation nurses need from other health practitioners to ease their work. The nurse informatics will provide the hardware both for information storage and transfer. Besides, the nurse will ensure accurate and updated data to aid the IT department in decision making.
Nurse administrators and the end-user also have needs and wants which the nurse informatics expert should consider. Williams (2015) explains that one of the roles of the administrator is budgeting. To decide how money is prioritized, the specialist will need the essential data and analytical tools capable of calculations and data analyses. The wants of the administrator systems support the software updates and data protection. The needs of the end-user will be to receive effective medical attention toward wellness and perfect health, while their wants are to enjoy quality services in terms of decision making and adhering to patient confidentiality. The necessities should be given priority to establish a balance because they are connected with care, which care is crucial to manage and cure diseases. Without medical attention, the patient will probably lose their lives. After primary care, the nurse will provide support for wants to be comfortable as they recuperate.
Needs of the End-user
The needs of the end-user are crucial because they are the clients of the health institutions. If the patients’ requirements cannot be met, then the institution’s primary mandate is compromised. Since the end-user is interested in quality services, the nurse informatics is ought to innovate and always ensure that systems meant for the administrator and the IT department are structured to generate the maximum utility. The end-user is the patient, and they always visit a health institution expecting that all the practitioners will cooperate in providing the best health services. Therefore, nurse informatics must ensure that communication proceeds smoothly. According to Alexander et al. (2017), information from the databases can help to ensure that the necessities of the patients are properly addressed. As the authors state, for this purpose “data trends can be identified and properly used” (p. 262). The various departments share data so that the needs of the consumer are met.
Effective Networking
Networking is an essential consideration in contemporary society because it allows for effective communication. Projects are best influenced through knowledge sharing and system innovation. McGonigle and Mastrian (2017) explain that it is essential to give networking a priority, especially in the age when hackers can steal information and obtain money through blackmail. Investing in perfect safety is one of the core considerations when structuring a security system. Therefore, the informatics nurse should be aware of all the potential safety loopholes and provide defense systems that protect the organization against hackers. A secure network is the perfect communication and does not put customer data at risk.
In addition to securing data, the system should allow for ease of access remotely. For instance, they should facilitate communication and exchange of information between a doctor and a patient even when either is in a remote location. The sharing of medical history can assist in saving the life of a patient. Creating an interactive mobile app that ensures that patients communicate with their doctors is cost-effective and allows for the sharing of information between medical practitioners. As a result, an institution needs to take full advantage of emerging technologies in communication.
Conclusion
Nurse informatics plays a crucial role in improving the quality of services in health institutions. One of the nurse’s key responsibilities is to guarantee that the needs and wants of IT professionals, nurse administrators, and end-users are catered for effectively. Finally, nurse informatics should ensure that the security system in an organization is updated and that innovation in information technology is implemented promptly. The fact that nursing informatics combines information technology and nursing research makes it a crucial component in the provision of quality services.
References
Alexander, S., Hoy, H., & Frith, K. H. (Eds.). (2017). Applied clinical informatics for nurses (2nd ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
McGonigle, T., & Mastrian, K. (2017). Nursing informatics and the foundation of knowledge (4th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Williams, P. A. (2015). Basic geriatric nursing (6th ed.). Mosby.