TN005 The Nurse Leader and the Systems Development Life Cycle

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NURS 6051 Transforming Nursing and Healthcare Through Technology

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The Systems Development Life Cycle for Implementation Planning

Solving or improving issues within healthcare is vital. The planning phase is when planning for improvements within healthcare occur. Understanding the issue and creating a plan to fix or improve the issue is involved in this first phase (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2017). According to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (n.d), they have a tool known as the Health IT toolkit that would assist in determining goals and what is feasible for projects.

Analysis

The next phase is known as the analysis phase. During this phase aspects surrounding the business processes and needs are determined and analyzed (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2017). The purpose of this phase is to look at work flows and everyday processes within an organization. With examination of these aspects may come light on how practices could be changed to adapt to the needed health information systems changes.

Design

During the design phase, the team creates a face for the data system. Design occurs on both high-level and low-level tiers (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2017). The team looks at all programs together as well as individually. During this phase, the team of information technology specialists also develops how the data interface will look and feel to the users.

Implementation

The Implementation phase is a very important aspect of this cycle. During this phase, the data or software that has been developed is put into place and begins being used. Further coding and language are developed during this phase as well. Some places do this phase in separate mini phases to help prevent or minimize confusion and complications (AlHazme et al., 2014).

Testing and Maintenance

In most cases, testing and maintenance are carried out together or within the same phase. During this phase, the software is tested with the organization usually through phases to ensure efficiency, effectiveness, and to identify and issues. The software is then maintained to withhold its standards and abilities to fulfill needed duties. Changes to software may be made over time to adjust to new organizational needs (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2017).

Nurse Involvement

Nursing leaders should be involved in every aspect of nursing. Nursing informatics projects are no different. Every nurse is not familiar with informatics or technology. Being unfamiliar with technology does not mean that nurses are not extremely resourceful when it comes to informatics projects. Nurses spend the most time with the patients compared to physicians, radiology staff, respiratory, etc. Nurses are also highly trained professionals and are expected to remain up to date with the best evidence-based practice guidelines. Involving nurses in the systems development life cycle is a decision that can only yield good results.

Electronic health record, medication administration record, documentation records, or whatever the project may be, nursing leaders can provide input that cannot be obtained elsewhere. Research recommendations for the future recommend that nurses be involved with nursing informatics projects for many reasons. One of the main reasons is the need for clinical decision support tools (Nibbelink et al., 2018). Nursing leaders can help develop or improve clinical decision support tools by providing input based on best practice.

NURS 6051 Assessment 5 TN005 The Nurse Leader and the Systems Development Life Cycle

Nurses are aware of the changes occurring in the profession and spend the most time caring for patients. These two facts alone should be enough to convince someone of the importance of nursing involvement in these developments. Nurses will be the main users of most nursing informatics projects and therefore should be allowed input. During the implementation and testing steps of the systems development life cycle nurses would be able to provide critical feedback regarding effectiveness, accuracy, usefulness, and even evidence-based practice.

The nursing profession has been voted as the number one trusted profession for decades now. Nurses are the front lines of healthcare and can be of a great resource when utilized correctly. Nursing informatics projects that are implemented without nursing input would be destined to fail. A plane could never have been built without the input of a pilot. The same goes for nursing informatics projects.

Job and Role Description of the Nurse in Systems Development and Implementation

Role of the Graduate Nurse in the Planning Stage

During the planning stage, the graduate nurse plays a pivotal role in identifying issues within the workplace and initiating plans to resolve them. A comprehensive assessment is conducted to ascertain the feasibility of proposed informatics projects, encompassing aspects such as budget, legal considerations, and technological capabilities (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2017). The roles of the graduate nurse in this stage include:

Defining workplace issues
Analyzing project feasibility
Collaborating with interprofessional teams to determine project requirements
Collecting data to support project implementation

Role of the Graduate Nurse in the Analysis Stage

In the analysis stage, various critical aspects surrounding the business and profession are examined. The nursing practice often lags in utilizing critical decision support systems, and a thorough analysis of the workplace and necessary upgrades is imperative to promote their utilization (Nibbelink et al., 2018). The roles of the graduate nurse in this stage involve:

Analyzing technical project requirements
Prioritizing project requirements
Evaluating project options and alternatives
Reviewing relevant organizational policies

Role of the Graduate Nurse in the Design Stage

In the design stage of the systems development life cycle, the graduate nurse assumes a crucial role in ensuring proper design implementation to optimize functionality for healthcare workers. Nurse involvement at this stage is essential for ensuring the quality of care (Darvish et al., 2014). The roles of the graduate nurse during this stage include:

Developing software configuration considering all professions
Analyzing interactions with other software
Documenting information regarding interactions with preexisting software
Ensuring functionality of individual aspects and the project as a whole

Role of the Graduate Nurse in the Implementation Stage

During the implementation stage, collaboration with various professions and professionals is essential to obtain diverse perspectives on project implementation. The roles of the graduate nurse in this stage comprise:

Developing high-functionality code
Gathering opinions and facts from team members regarding project implementation
Analyzing information and opinions to improve the project
Initiating necessary changes to enhance project performance and satisfaction

Role of the Graduate Nurse in the Testing and Maintenance Stage

In the testing and maintenance stage, the graduate nurse is expected to be involved in ongoing project management, including maintenance and upgrades to ensure continuous satisfaction and quality of care. The roles of the graduate nurse during this stage encompass:

Initiating and providing technology training
Offering technology support when required
Analyzing data to ensure effectiveness
Collecting and analyzing input from professionals to assess upgrade needs
Developing and providing upgrades as necessary to maintain functionality

References

Darvish, A., Bahramnezhad, F., Keyhanian, S., & Navidhamidi, M. (2014). The role of nursing informatics in promoting quality of health care and the need for appropriate education. Global Journal of Health Science, 6(6), 11–18. https://doi.org/10.5539/gjhs.v6n6p11

Laureate Education (Producer). (2018). Managing health information technology [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

McGonigle, D., & Mastrian, K. (2017). Nursing informatics and the foundation of knowledge (4th ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Nibbelink, C. W., Young, J. R., Carrington, J. M., & Brewer, B. B. (2018). Informatics Solutions for Application of Decision-Making Skills. Critical Care Nursing Clinics of North America, 30(2), 237–246. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cnc.2018.02.006

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. (n.d.). Health IT evaluation toolkit and evaluation measures quick reference guide. Retrieved September 27, 2018, from https://healthit.ahrq.gov/health-it-tools-and-resources/evaluation-resources/health-itevaluation-toolkit-and-evaluation-measures-quick-reference

Alhazme, R. H., Rana, A. M., & De Lucca, M. (2014). Development and implementation of a clinical and business intelligence system for the Florida health data warehouse. Online journal of public health informatics, 6(2), e182. https://doi.org/10.5210/ojphi.v6i2.5249

McGonigle, D., & Mastrian, K. (2017). Nursing informatics and the foundation of knowledge. (4th ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Nibbelink, C. W., Young, J. R., Carrington, J. M., & Brewer, B. B. (2018). Informatics Solutions for Application of Decision-Making Skills. Critical care nursing clinics of North America, 30(2), 237–246. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cnc.2018.02.006

TN005 The Nurse Leader and the Systems Development Life Cycle