The Future of Nursing Informatics

Healthcare and technology are two important topics that continue to change and grow as time moves forward. Nursing Informatics is only going to get bigger and better. Nursing technology has transformed the way nurses work and continues to evolve, along with the roles that nurses play in today’s health care arena.
 According to various studies and surveys, technology in the nursing world has increased patient satisfaction and overall outcomes, reduced clinical errors and decreased the amount of paperwork that nurses were once required to perform.
 The outlook for new technology in nursing remains robust, as new devices, computers and robots aim to transform the future of health care. The following technologies are just a few that have made headlines recently as they ease and streamline each nurse’s workload to help them focus on what matters most—their patients. From meaningful use to accountable care, healthcare trends are transforming nurses' roles, responsibilities and career trajectories.
Key to being part of this change is nursing informatics. The field has already begun to flourish. Healthcare organizations can do much to support the evolving role of nursing informatics.
We can develop nurses' potential to fulfill emerging informatics management roles by focusing on leadership skills such as communications, strategic and systems thinking, clinical, financial and business operations, and technical skills, build a culture that supports nursing informatics through programs organized around reward and recognition, professional development, mentoring, performance planning and assessment, and career path development. As the healthcare landscape continues to shift, nurses are key leaders to navigate the need for coordinated care and enable better data infrastructure. The role of the nurse leader in informatics will most certainly be integral to the industry's future.