Building Blocks of Nursing Informatics
To prepare for these innovations, the reader must understand fundamental infor- mation and computer concepts, covered in the Introduction to Information, Informa- tion Science, and Information Systems and Computer Science and the Foundation of Knowledge Model chapters, respectively. Information science deals with the in- terchange (or flow) and scaffolding (or structure) of information and involves the application of information tools for solutions to patient care and business problems in health care. To be able to use and synthesize information effectively, an individual must be able to obtain, perceive, process, synthesize, comprehend, convey, and man- age the information. Computer science deals with understanding the development, design, structure, and relationship of computer hardware and software. This science offers extremely valuable tools that, if used skillfully, can facilitate the acquisition and manipulation of data and information by nurses, who can then synthesize these resources into an ever-evolving knowledge and wisdom base. This not only facilitates professional development and the ability to apply evidence-based practice decisions within nursing care, but, if the results are disseminated and shared, can also advance the profession’s knowledge base. The development of knowledge tools, such as the automation of decision making and strides in artificial intelligence, has altered the understanding of knowledge and its representation. The ability to structure knowl- edge electronically facilitates the ability to share knowledge structures and enhance collective knowledge.
As discussed in the Introduction to Cognitive Science and Cognitive Informatics chapter, cognitive science deals with how the human mind functions. This science encompasses how people think, understand, remember, synthesize, and access stored information and knowledge. The nature of knowledge, including how it is developed, used, modified, and shared, provides the basis for continued learning and intellectual growth.
The Ethical Applications of Informatics chapter focuses on ethical issues associ- ated with managing private information with technology and provides a framework for analyzing ethical issues and supporting ethical decision making.
The material within this book is placed within the context of the Foundation of Knowledge model (shown in Figure I-1 and periodically throughout the book, but more fully introduced and explained in the Nursing Science and the Foundation of Knowledge chapter). The Foundation of Knowledge model is used throughout the text to illustrate how knowledge is used to meet the needs of healthcare delivery sys- tems, organizations, patients, and nurses. It is through interaction with these building blocks—the theories, architecture, and tools—that one acquires the bits and pieces of
seCtIoN I Building Blocks of Nursing Informatics 3
data necessary, processes these into information, and generates and disseminates the resulting knowledge. Through this dynamic exchange, which includes feedback, indi- viduals continue the interaction and use of these sciences to input or acquire, process, and output or disseminate generated knowledge. Humans experience their environ- ment and learn by acquiring, processing, generating, and disseminating knowledge. When they then share (disseminate) this new knowledge and receive feedback on the knowledge they have shared, the feedback initiates the cycle of knowledge all over again. As individuals acquire, process, generate, and disseminate knowledge, they are motivated to share, rethink, and explore their own knowledge base. This complex process is captured in the Foundation of Knowledge model. Throughout the chapters in the Building Blocks of Nursing Informatics section, readers are challenged to think about how the model can help them to understand the ways in which they acquire, process, generate, disseminate, and then receive and process feedback on their new knowledge of the building blocks of NI.