Kathryn Keiper
RN BSN CCRN alum
Clinical Analyst
Nursing Informatics student
The ANA defines NI as "a specialty that integrates nursing science, computer science, and information science to manage and communicate data, information, and knowledge in nursing practice" (2001). Any critical care nurse will tell you that we love the "high tech" aspects of working in the ICU; we are also accustomed to managing and communicating a large amount of vital patient information. After more than twenty years at the bedside, I realized it was time for a change. I concluded that blending my nursing experience with computer science would be the ideal direction in which to take my career.
Nursing informatics can benefit our profession in two ways: using computers to enhance nursing practice and translating nursing into a language that computers can understand. Information systems can improve the accuracy of documentation and quantify the contribution that nurses make toward desired patient outcomes. This should result in an improved standard of care and reimbursement more in line with the major role that nurses play in patient care. The ability to efficiently document care and measure outcomes is also essential in establishing a data base of nursing knowledge and providing evidence-based care, which are necessary to promote nursing as an integral, legitimate, and professional part of the health care team.
It is essential that experienced, knowledgeable nurses be involved in the research, development, marketing, implementation, and education processes of integrating IT into their practice. This is how I envision my current and future contribution to the nursing profession. I can be contacted at kkeiper@pmchealthsystem.org.
