Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving
In the modern era, there are few professions that do not to some extent rely on data. Stockbrokers rely on market data to advise clients on financial matters. Meteorologists rely on weather data to forecast weather conditions, while realtors rely on data to advise on the purchase and sale of property. In these and other cases, data not only helps solve problems, but adds to the practitioner’s and the discipline’s body of knowledge.
Of course, the nursing profession also relies heavily on data. The field of nursing informatics aims to make sure nurses have access to the appropriate date to solve healthcare problems, make decisions in the interest of patients, and add to knowledge.
In this Discussion, you will consider a scenario that would benefit from access to data and how such access could facilitate both problem-solving and knowledge formation.
To Prepare:
- Reflect on the concepts of informatics and knowledge work as presented in the Resources.
- Consider a hypothetical scenario based on your own healthcare practice or organization that would require or benefit from the access/collection and application of data. Your scenario may involve a patient, staff, or management problem or gap.
By Day 3 of Week 1
Post a description of the focus of your scenario. Describe the data that could be used and how the data might be collected and accessed. What knowledge might be derived from that data? How would a nurse leader use clinical reasoning and judgment in the formation of knowledge from this experience?
Expert Answer and Explanation
Nursing Informatics
To enhance patient safety within a healthcare facility, there are a lot of dynamics that come into play. The number of missed nursing care, the number of patients’ vis-a-vis the care providers, the number of fall rates as a result of design aspects of the facilities, to list a few. These are some of the key features that need to be assessed with a conclusive solution realized to any issues concerning patient safety. However, to assist in the process, collection and assessment of data is vital.
With the evolution of healthcare systems through technology advances, collecting information in a healthcare setup has become simpler (McBride & Tietze, 2018). Using the example above where patient safety is supposed to be bolstered, there are different sets of data that may be of help. For example, data on the number of admissions per unit can be collected and the nursing staff adjusted as per the need of individual units as a result, reducing physical and emotional nurse burnout that may result in poor safety outcomes for the patient. Another data that can be collected is the number of fall rates and the reason why they occurred in the first place. This data can be used to facilitate changes within the hospital setting to secure better patient safety.
For a nurse leader, the collection of such data is vital, especially in the decision-making process. From the collected information, the nurse leader can decide to allocate more nurses on a case-by-case scenario with an increase in the number of patients in different patient units. A nurse leader can also call for structural changes within the facility to reduce patient fall rates. Therefore, with the use of nursing informatics, a nurse leader should always assess areas for improvement by collecting relevant data that can be used to formulate organizational changes to bolster patient safety (Lee et al., 2017).
References
Lee, T. Y., Sun, G. T., Kou, L. T., & Yeh, M. L. (2017). The use of information technology to enhance patient safety and nursing efficiency. Technology and Health Care, 25(5), 917-928. DOI: 10.3233/THC-170848
McBride, S., & Tietze, M. (2018). Nursing informatics for the advanced practice nurse: patient safety, quality, outcomes, and interprofessionalism. Springer Publishing Company.
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