Knowledge Worker in Healthcare
Knowledge workers are valuable to any organization, but healthcare needs knowledge nurses to keep up with the organizations with which they work. Healthcare technology is what is keeping organizations constantly learning new best practices to keep with the changing world of healthcare informatics. Successful organizations are allowing all staff to participate in the direction of the hospital, this new way of thinking allows for more opportunities for good knowledge workers to help with innovations needed to keep the organization within the race to be the best. Today is a great day to be a nurse, gone is the nurse of the past who performed basic tasks without any autonomy. The new nurse is full of knowledge to not only grow as a person, but grow as a part of a team of people who are making a difference in the face of healthcare.
The Concept of Knowledge Worker
The Webster’s dictionary definition of knowledge is “the information, understanding, or skill that you get from experience or education (2011).” The key words with this definition are experience and education. It takes a combination of both of these skills to be a knowledge worker. Knowledge workers are valuable to any organization because of the ideas and innovation they bring to it. Nurses can be taught through school and work training how to perform tasks. The next generation nurse needs to transform from task worker to knowledge worker. To obtain this knowledge nurses must use experiences and observations over time. The actual definition of knowledge worker varies from author to author, but the main key points is that a knowledge worker in healthcare is creative and innovative. They have abilities to identify problems and work ...
... middle of paper ...
...for themselves, allowing them to be discharged earlier and more involved with their own care.
Conclusion
Nurses can continue to evolve into people who is not only a person who advocates for patients and is caring and empathetic, but those that can improve the quality of care that is required for the advancement of healthcare as a whole. Technology is at the forefront of innovation and the nurse of today plays an important role in not only learning how to best use technology but also how to teach and be the innovators of new technology to come. Nurses have evolved into these knowledge workers through increased education, increased use of evidence and participating in more than performing simple patient tasks. Successful organizations are allowing nurses to be a part of their growth and in return nurses are reaping the benefits of working for these organizations.
Nursing is constantly evolving and changing, in order to be more efficient in providing care than in the past. The nursing profession includes professionals who are not only caregivers but support systems as well as educators. All these factors help to provide optimal care for patients and to also better serve their families and the community. All nurses are encouraged to break down the simplistic notion society has about the nursing profession because nursing is a multi-faceted profession encompassing many different factors that are beneficial to overall human development and health.
The IOM report had four key messages needed for advancing the future of nursing. “Nurses should practice to the full extent of their education and training; achieve higher levels of education and training through an improved education system that promotes seamless academic progression; be full partners, with physicians and other health care professionals, …and; effective workforce planning and policy making require better data collection and an improved information infrastructure” (Institute of Medicine, 2011). The report also included eight recommendations needed to facilitate the necessary changes to in the nursing profession so meet to demands of the healthcare reform.
A bachelor’s degree is required for this role, however, a master’s degree is recommended. The NI assumes both the technical roles which closely involve the design of information systems, and the less technical positions, such as project manager for the adoption of a new application or trainer of the users. They bring institutional knowledge and experience to the table when applications are designed to meet the needs of the users (AMIA, 2015). Overall, the application of nursing informatics knowledge is empowering and NP, NE, and NA require it in achieving patient centered
In any environment where a nurse performs its duties there is a combination of functions. Nurses work as: Health Promoter and Care Provider; Learner and Teacher; Leader and Manager; Patient Advocate; Research Consumer; Colleague and Collaborator. Nursing functions can be also be described by the degree of reliance on other professionals: dependent (based on written orders); independent (when personal judgment comes into play); and interdependent (when the practitioner collaborates with teams and protocols.
Increases the responsibility and accountability of professional nurses — an advantage for lifelong learners and knowledge workers, but a disadvantage for those without the proper knowledge and
Healthcare is a continuous emerging industry across the world. With our ever changing life styles and the increased levels of pollution across the world more and more people are suffering from various health issues. Nursing is an extremely diverse profession and among the highest educated with several levels ranging from a licensed practical nurse (LPN) to a registered nurse (RN) on up to a Doctorate in Nursing. Diane Viens (2003) states that ‘The NP is a critical member of the workforce to assume the leadership roles within practice, education, research, health systems, and health policy’.
Some aspects of the nurse’s job have been made easy and facilitated with the aid of other well trained professionals within their working environments. According to the American Nurses Association (ANA) (2012), registered nurse’s performance has greatly improved over the years as a result of their coordination and partnership with the health care system with other health care providers. As a result, registered nurses are today seen to occupy important leadership positions in the healthcare system and they participate when they are making decisions for patients as well as for other
Due to advance technology, nurses will be expected to know how to run the lifts, computers, and iPads. Nurse’s duties can shift depending on where one lives and the job opportunities (“Degree Programs for Registered Nurses”). Nurses are not only in charge of taking care of their patients, but are also in charge of the nurses assistants to observe if the job is done as expected. Most of today’s nurses live off of working in hospitals and nursing homes (Cardillo). Some other jobs that are
...ch like life in general, is full of uncertainty, as well as endless possibilities. As long as nursing continues to grow, there is no limit to the achievements that can be accomplished in the profession, for not only the individual patients, but also for the healthcare industry as a whole. Nurses must remember, that as they move forward, they will continue to break down barriers and stake their claim as a necessity in healthcare. Nurses must also hold tight to the teachings of their predecessors. The future of nursing holds great advances in healthcare and technology innovation; but, most importantly, the future of nursing needs to be saturated with nurses that are willing to put their heart and soul into healing the human spirit. The future of nursing must bring with it the teachings of the past, while providing their patients with the most qualified nursing care.
According to the author, nursing practice needs to stay current with technological advances while keeping its identity as a patient focused profession. Nurses use technology to improve care from a patient?s perspective, both in quality of care and cost. At the same time, nurses must learn to balance technological knowledge with personal skills, thus providing optimum clinical care while maintaining a person-focused relationship with the patient.
...nce in the outcomes for many. Knowledge grants others the ability to fulfill their duties across a spectrum of fields and for nurses; it allows them to make decision that can improve the outcome of patient's health. Nurses are a vital backbone to the healthcare system and through research they are able to continue to expand their roles, knowledge, and abilities on a professional and personal level.
In the recent years, the health care system has gone through major transformation related to implementation of Affordable care. Also the nation is facing many health challenging for example the American population is aging, also the nation is increasingly getting diversify and the role of health care reform is more focused towards wellness and preventive care. In addition to it, the patient care has become more complexed and in order to meets the demands of the transformed healthcare system nurses has to delivery competent and high quality patient care. It include, nurses’ roles as leadership, policy maker, system improvement, research and evidence based practice and interprofessional collaboration work. On the other hand, nurses has to exhibit their competency in community and public health and geriatrics and master their skills in information technology system which will assist them in partnership care with other health care professionals in the provision of quality care. In order to acknowledge the expanding demands and fulfilling the recommendations of IOM, nurses has to prepare themselves to meet the needs of the nation’s health by acquiring higher level of education (The National Academics of Science. Engineering. Medicine,
Information Systems/Technology and patient care technology for the improvement and transformation of health care is an important part of the DNP. Technology has transformed every aspect of human life in positive ways. Technology brought efficiency and improved healthcare deliverance system. Healthcare technologies enabled practitioners to better understand disease process and how to implement best treatment plan. DNP programs across the country embrace information systems and technology in their nursing curriculum because, it prepares nursing students to be innovative and deliver best care (AACN, 2006). DNP graduates must have the ability to use technology to analyze and disseminate critical information to find solutions that
Nurses that were once an invisible self-sacrificing profession needs to bloom and evolve into a noticeable and confident profession equivalent to other roles in healthcare (i.e doctors). Nurses need to collectively be proactive in showing the public that with out nurses the healthcare world would not of been as great at it is today. Nurses in one’s opinion are the heart of healthcare, through the knowledge, passion, and skill of a nurse contributes the drive the healthcare role to
The nursing field has experienced plenty of advancements both in technology and medicine since the twentieth century. Not only have these advancements changed the face of nursing but have also become an intricate part of the field. Technology has the capacity to improve patient care and outcomes and is therefore of great importance to nursing. How nurses manage clinical workflows and how they deliver patient care have been completely changed by various innovations in software. The rationale used in selecting the topic of advances in nursing is that the world is fast evolving and so is the healthcare sector. Extensive analysis and synthesizing of knowledge, interpretation of information, research and innovations in nursing has been done over the years. It is interesting to have an in-depth look at what has been done by various influencers in the profession. Purpose of this paper is to demonstrate both technological and medical advancements in the nursing field.