Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Role of the Informatics Nurse

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Introduction to Nursing Informatics

Part of the book series: Health Informatics ((HI))

  • 2344 Accesses

Abstract

Over the past 2 decades, the scope of practice for nurses in informatics roles has been evolving and shifting in response to the needs of health care organizations. While informatician practice has been seldom consistently defined or circumscribed in terms of role responsibilities and scope, the work has significantly contributed to the evolution and dissemination of information and communication technology (ICT) across the globe. Further the advent of formalized education in nursing and health informatics has led to the establishment of associated credentials and situated informatics as a specialty within nursing and other health professions. In this chapter, the author will review the types of informatics roles that have been assumed by nurses working in the field of informatics, key role functions, and a perspective on the essential leadership roles and potential areas of specialization for the next generation of nurse informaticians.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • American Medical Informatics Association. Academic informatics programs. 2020. Accessed at: https://www.amia.org/education/programs-and-courses. Accessed 26 Feb 2020.

  • American Nurses Association. Scope of practice for nursing informatics. Washington, DC: ANA; 1994.

    Google Scholar 

  • American Nurses Association. Standards of practice for nursing informatics. Washington, DC: ANA; 1995.

    Google Scholar 

  • American Nurses Association (ANA). Nursing informatics:Scope and standards of practice. 2nd ed. Silver Spring: Nursesbooks.Org; 2016.

    Google Scholar 

  • American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). (n.d.). Nursing informatics. At: https://www.nursingworld.org/our-certifications/informatics-nurse/. Accessed 26 Feb 2020.

  • Ash JS, Bates DW. Factors and forces affecting EHR system adoption: report of a 2004 ACMI. discussion. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2005;12:8–12.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ash JS, Stavri PZ, Dykstra R. Implementing computerized physician order entry: the importance of special people. Int J Med Inform. 2003;69:235–50.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing. Nursing Informatics Entry-to-Practice Competencies for Registered Nurses, Ottawa, ON: Author; 2012. At: http://www.casn.ca/2014/12/casn-entry-practice-nursing-informatics-competencies/; Accessed 20 Feb 2020.

  • Collins S, Yen PY, Phillips A, Kennedy MK. Nursing Informatics Competency Assessment for the Nurse Leader: The Delphi Study. J Nur Admin. 2017;47(4):212–8.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Digital Health Canada. Health informatics education. 2020. https://digitalhealthcanada.com/core-hi-education/. Accessed 26 Feb 2020.

  • Goosen W, Murphy J, editors. Forecasting Informatics Competencies for Nurses in the Future of Connected Health. Amsterdam: IOS Press; 2017.

    Google Scholar 

  • Health Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS). HIMSS 2017 nursing informatics workforce survey. 2017. At: https://www.himss.org/resources/2017-himss-nursing-informatics-workforce-survey. Accessed 26 Feb 2020.

  • Health Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS). Health IT certifications. 2020. At: http://www.himss.org/health-it-certification?navItemNumber=13588. Accessed 26 Feb 2020.

  • Hersh W. Who are the informaticians? What we know and should know. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2006;13(2):166–70.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Honey MLL, Skiba DJ, Procter P, Foster J, Kouri P, Nagle LM. Nursing informatics competencies for entry to practice: the perspective of six countries. Stud Health Technol Inform. 2017;232:51–61.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kannry J, Sengstack P, Thyvalikakath TP, et al. The Chief Clinical Informatics Officer (CCIO): AMIA task force report on CCIO knowledge, education, and skillset requirements. Appl Clin Inform. 2016;7(1):143–76.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kennedy MA, Moen A. Nursing leadership and informatics competencies: Shaping transformation of professional practice. In: Goosen W, Murphy J, editors. Forecasting Informatics Competencies for Nurses in the Future of Connected Health. Amsterdam: IOS Press; 2017. p. 197–206.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kleib M, Nagle LM. Development of the Canadian Nurse Informatics Competency Assessment Scale (C-NICAS) and evaluation of Alberta’s Registered Nurses’ self-perceived informatics competencies. Com Inf Nur. 2018a;36(7):35–358.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kleib M, Nagle LM. Factors Associated with Canadian nurses’ informatics competency. Com Inf Nurs. 2018b;36(8):406–15.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leatt P, Shea C, Studer M, Wang V. IT solutions for patient safety: best practices for successful implementation in healthcare. Healthc Q. 2006;9(1):94–104.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McLane S, Turley J. Informaticians: how they may benefit your healthcare organization. J Nurs Adm. 2011;41(1):29–35.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nagle LM. Nurses Carpe Diem. In: One step beyond: the evolution of technology and nursing. Proceedings of 7th International Congress Nursing Informatics Conference on CD, Auckland, 2000.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nagle LM. Everything I know about informatics, I didn’t learn in nursing school. Can J Nurs Leadersh. 2007;20(3):22–5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nagle LM. The importance of being informatics savvy. Can J Nurs Leadersh. 2016;28(4):1–4.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nagle LM, Crosby K, Frisch N, Borycki E, Donelle L, Hannah K, Harris A, Jetté S, Shaben, T. Developing entry-to-practice competencies for registered nurses. Proceedings 12th International Congress on Nursing Informatics, 2014, Taipei, Taiwan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nagle LM, Sermeus W, Junger A. Evolving role of the nursing informatics specialist. In: Goosen W, Murphy J, editors. Forecasting informatics competencies for nurses in the future of connected health. Amsterdam: IOS Press; 2017. p. 212–21.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nagle, LM, Furlong, K, Kleib M. (Eds). Study of digital health in Canadian schools of nursing: curricula content and nurse educator capacity. 2018. Ottawa, ON: Canada Health Infoway. At: https://www.infoway-inforoute.ca/en/component/edocman/resources/reports/benefits-evaluation/3716-study-of-digital-health-in-canadian-schools-of-nursing. Accessed 26 Feb 2020.

  • Scholes M, Tallberg MA, Pluyter-Wenting E. International nursing informatics: a history of the first forty years: 1960–2000. London: British Computer Society; 2002.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sewell J. Informatics and nursing: opportunities and challenges. 6th ed. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer—Lippincott Williams & Wilkin; 2019.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith K, Tyler DD. Systems life cycle: planning and analysis. In: Saba VK, McCormick KA, editors. Essentials of nursing informatics. 5th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill; 2011. p. 77–92.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith SE, Drake LE, Harris J-G, Watson K, Pohlner PG. Clinical informatics: a workforce priority for 21st century healthcare. Aust Health Rev. 2011;35:130–5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Staggers N, Thompson CB. The evolution of definitions for nursing informatics: a critical analysis and revised definition. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2002;9(3):255–61.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strudwick G, Nagle LM, Kassam I, Pahwa M, Sequeira L. Informatics competencies for nurse leaders: a scoping review. J Nurs Admin. 2019a;49(6):323–30.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strudwick G, Nagle LM, Morgan A, Kennedy MA, Currie LM, White P. Adapting and validating nurse leader informatics competencies in the Canadian context: Results of a Delphi study. Int J Med Inform. 2019b;129:211–8.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Studer M. The effect of organizational factors on the effectiveness of EMR system implementation: what have we learned? Healthc Q. 2005;8(4):92–8.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Warm D, Thomas B. A review of the effectiveness of the clinical informaticist role. Nurs Stand. 2011;25(44):35–8.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yen PY, Phillips A, Kennedy MK, Collins S. Nursing informatics competency assessment for the nurse leader: Instrument refinement, validation, and psychometric analysis. J Nurs Admin. 2017;47(5):271–7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Director of Digital Health and Virtual Learning, Faculty of Nursing, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada

    Lynn M. Nagle

  2. Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada

    Lynn M. Nagle

  3. Arthur Labatt Family School of Nursing, Western University, London, Canada

    Lynn M. Nagle

Authors
  1. Lynn M. Nagle
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Lynn M. Nagle .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Nursing, Psychotherapy and Community Health, Center of eIntegrated Care, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland

    Pamela Hussey

  2. Center of Excellence, Gevity Consulting Inc and Kennedy Health Informatics Inc, Halifax, NS, Canada

    Margaret Ann Kennedy

11.1 Electronic Supplementary Material

Data 1

Educational Template (PPTX 87 kb)

Glossary

AMIA

American Medical Informatics Association

Business intelligence

The use of data and information to inform decision impacting any aspect of a business

Clinical intelligence

The use of data and information to inform decisions that are specifically clinical in nature

CNIA

Canadian Nursing Informatics Association

CNIO

Chief Nursing Informatics Officer

CPHIMS

Certified Professional in Healthcare Information and Management Systems

Health informatics

The intersection between health care, information management and information technology

HIMSS

Health Information Management Systems Society

HSU

Health System Use, where information is aggregated and analyzed to inform decisions

IMIA NI-SIG

International Medical Informatics Association Nursing Informatics Special Interest Group

IMIA

International Medical Informatics Association

PMP

Project Mangement Professional, a professional credential granted by Project Management International (PMI)

SDLC

Systems Development Life Cycle

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2021 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Nagle, L.M. (2021). The Role of the Informatics Nurse. In: Hussey, P., Kennedy, M.A. (eds) Introduction to Nursing Informatics. Health Informatics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58740-6_11

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58740-6_11

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-58739-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-58740-6

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation