It's a Partnership! FNP & Informatics Specialists

Reflecting on the role of the APRN as it relates to collaboration between the role as a Family Nurse Practitioner and nursing informatics 

 Collaboration between Family Nurse Practitioners and Informatics Specialists is necessary in-patient care and improving clinical workflow. Working with informatics ensures efficient use of:

RegisteredNursing.org

• 👉 Health Information Technology HIT : Refers to the use of technology, to store, retrieve, manage healthcare information. 

• 👉 Electronic Health Records (EHR): Digital versions of patient charts that store medical information  

• 👉 Barcode Medication Administration (BCMA), Pyxis: Ensures right drug, dose & patient when scanning barcode & wristband. Tracks usage in real time, increased medication security & tracking (Raymond, et al., 2022).

• 👉 Telehealth: Provides remote patient care and virtual appointments. Platforms like Teladoc & Amwell for virtual healthcare appointments

• 👉 Mobile Apps: Mobile health (mhealth) is designed to support patients and encourage communication with providers.

• 👉 Provider Tools/Support: Up-To-Date, Epocrates to assist healthcare providers with drug info, clinical guidelines and diagnostic tools

• 👉 Decision Support Systems with predictive analytics: Identify patients at risk for deteriorating health, allowing for early intervention from a healthcare professional

• 👉 Remote Monitoring: Apps that sync with wearable devices (Dexacom, Medtronic, Apple Health)

• 👉 Online Learning Platforms: Essential to improve skills with new technologies using simulation, and online learning

• 👉 Secure Messaging Apps: Vocera & TigerText (Technology Informatics Guiding Education Preform): Communication for nurses to securely and in real time talk to other providers, clinical collaboration platform

The collaboration between Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) and Nursing Informatics Specialist helps to bring together clinical expertise and health technology. The goal is to improve patient care through efficiency and safety. APRNs can drive transformations that make healthcare increasingly accessible, data driven while being patient-centered 

Nurses Using Technology in Healthcare 

The qualities of a good nurse haven't changed through the centuries, but technology certainly has made advancements.

Technolgy has re-shaped how nurses perform their roles, this allows higher, quality care, enhance patient safety and efficiency in workflow. 

 No matter the technology advancement, it empowers providers to deliver better, more efficient, and personalized care while improving practice. Technology will continue to evolve, but the provider's role in providing compassionate, evidence-based practice care remains timeless. 

Example of innovative nursing informatic tool that offers patient-centered chronic disease management through the use of remote monitoring. This provides real time glucose readings for patients with diabetes.  

👉 Real time Data & Remote Monitoring- healthcare professionals can access continuous readings

👉 Alerts & Trends to prevent hypo/hyperglycemic episodes

👉Integrates with electronic health records (EHR) & mobile health (mhealth)

👉 Promotes empowerment/self-management

Looking Ahead

Healthcare providers and technology are rapidly evolving, with FNP at the forefront. FNPs will play an integral role in optimizing implementation, while technology supports & enhances compassionate, high-quality care. Growing emphasizes on innovation, data integration, and patient empowerment, made possible by HIT

References: 

Ball, M. J., & Lillis, P. (2023). The TIGER Initiative: Transforming the Future of Nursing through Health Information Technology. Journal of Nursing Education, 40(6), 232-235.

https://mavink.com/explore/Dexcom-Continuous-Glucose-Monitoring-Devices

Nursing Tech Talk. (2025, January 25). Nursing Informatics Explained: The Power of Technolgy in Healthcare. YouTube. Nursing Informatics Explained: The Power of Tech in Healthcare 🩺 

Raymond, L., Castonguay, A., Doyon, O. & Pare, G. (2022). Nurse practitioners' involvement and experience with AI-based health technologies: A systematic review. Applied Nursing Research, 66, 151604. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apnr.2022.151604

The Medical Futurist (2023, December 20). Top 6 Medical Innovations to Watch For in 2024- The Medical Futurist. YouTube. https://youtu.be/Hw_2983Gd-c?si=J2smiWd6N9Aus4eS.