The Roles of Nurse Informaticists

Just as the Internet and other technological innovations have radically changed the world, the constant evolution of informatics continues to transform nursing and health care. The nurse is at the forefront of this transformation, serving as a knowledgeable leader in system development, implementation, and management. As new technologies become integrated into health care settings, the role of the nurse informaticist will continue to become more critical.

For this Discussion, you examine the informatics roles that have evolved to facilitate this transformation. You consider different functional roles and responsibilities that nurse informaticists may fulfill and how they contribute to technological progress throughout the health care field.

Note: There are many different terms used to refer to “nurse informaticist,” including informatics nurse, nurse informatician, and informatics specialist. In this specialization, the term “nurse informaticist” is applied, adhering to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) terminology.

To prepare:

Review this week’s media presentation, The Role of Nurse Informaticists, reflecting on the impact that informaticists have on health care settings.
Using the web resource “Working Group – Nursing Informatics: Roles” in this week’s Learning Resources, investigate the job descriptions of and responsibilities aligned with various nursing informatics roles. Consider how these roles might have grown in breadth and importance since the original postings.
Identify a nursing informatics role that is of particular interest to you. Conduct further research to find out how this specific role might contribute to patient safety, quality of care, nurse efficiency, the implementation of new informatics initiatives, and/or electronic health records.

Post A minimum of 550 words with 4 references in APA format

1) A description of a nursing informatics role that that is of interest to you and why.

2) In your posting, explain how the nurse informaticist in this role impacts one or more of the following: patient safety, quality of care, nurse efficiency, the implementation of new informatics initiatives, and/or electronic health records.

3) Justify your reasoning by citing authentic examples and references to the research literature.

Required Resources