Advantages of Nursing Informatics
The use of information technology has permeated virtually all spheres of life including the health sector. This has been a significant boost in making tasks easier. One particular area that has benefitted from integrating information technology in the health sector is nursing. It has been incorporated through nursing informatics (Cashin & Cook 2010). In this context, information management systems and analytics are integrated with nursing science. The synch created in such a framework is used to identify, characterize, manipulate, and communicate raw data, synthesized information, and knowledge through the conveyor belt to inform policy and decisions in nursing practice. The principle of nursing informatics has been modified to conform with the uniqueness of various areas and countries (Staudinger, Hob & Ostermann 2009). This paper evaluates the Australian nursing informatics system regarding its key features, purpose, and the context of its applicability. It also evaluates the system with regards to its impact on the practice of nursing and the provision of person-centred care. This paper focuses on Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) and its impact on nursing practice and the quality of person-centred care.
The mainstreaming of this system in Australia started in 1984 took different dimensions though it has had a winding path. One of the Australian systems is based on organized groups which nurses are encouraged to join to be able to get specialized training. Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) is one such system founded on the principle that quality healthcare is a right of all Australians. It draws its membership from registered nurses, midwives, and assistants working with the states and territory of Australia. It has over 259,000 members. It is a union that defends the right of the nursing worker. It also enables them to get opportunities for benchmarking with other nurses and authorities in the field of information technology (Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation 2017). This forms one of the systems through which informatics is practiced. Further, the system sets nursing informatics priorities such as contributing to nursing training curricula with IT components, developing nursing informatics language, and promoting continued research in this domain. Another important element in this practice is the automation of the nursing technologies such that after diagnosing the condition, the generated data is analysed in real time and then directed to the relevant department (Saranto et al. 2014). With the particulars, the synthesized information translates into nursing guidelines related to the conditions of the patient in question. The prescription, dietetics details, and the intervals are also indicated completed with a reminder mechanism. Nursing informatics is useful in automating some services apart from creating a self-service interphase for clients and enhancing convenience to them. Just like other countries, the practice in Australia is characterized by computerized diagnosis, handling, storing, and synthesizing the generated information to give it meaning (Hannah et al. 2014).
Further, ANMF crystallizes nursing informatics system in Australia. It develops the informatics requirements that every registered nurse is to meet. Nurses should have technical knowledge to ensure that they are in line with the changing time (Haddad & Wickramasinghe 2015). ANMF also enforces standards in this regard as a way of quality control. It does this by benchmarking with other information systems and unions such as NIA, Commonwealth Nursing Federation, Global Nurses United, International Council of Nurses, South Pacific Nurses Forum among others. Some of these standards include demonstrable IT ability, data analysis, evaluative skills, and most importantly, using the information to build formidable evidence for decision-making. Patient-centred nursing is the universally accepted care method which forms a key aspect in health informatics.
In conclusion, nursing informatics in Australia has taken quite a substantial root. The Australian nursing informatics system is nurtured and enforced mainly through registered nurses. The role of ANMF is well articulated in this respect. This outfit does a serious job of developing the quality standards ensuring that nurses are technology literate and can use IT to generate credible data to make a precise decision. Therefore, this system is helpful and should be fully integrated into healthcare sector. Moreover, nursing informatics leads to change in the way of storage and recording information about patients from paper records to electronic records. However, the vagaries of technology such as being prone to attacks, downtime, crash, and others need to be well insured and monitored.
Reference List
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Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF). 2017. About the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation. Retrieved from http://anmf.org.au/pages/about-the-anmf