Using Computers In Nursing

The best selling nurses' guide to understanding and using computers in the workplace--now revised and completely up-to-date. New edition discusses the increasing use of specialized software within nursing curriculums. Examines use of the Internet as a powerful research tool; the way computers are changing the practice of nursing and the NCLEX; telemedicine; and more.

As computers continue to become more common in the health care industry, computer literacy has become an integral part of the nursing profession. Selected Book of the Year by the American Journal of Nursing in its first edition, this book continues to provide an introduction to computer technology for nurses.

Nursing, like other health-related professions, is information-inten sive. The quality of care a patient receives is based on the soundness of judgment exercised by the health care team. Underlying sound judg ment is up-to-date information. Unless nurses have access to accurate and pertinent information, the care being rendered will not be of the highest standard. What is required is not necessarily more rapid and efficient informa tion services. Modern technology can process immense amounts of data in the blink of an eye. What we in the health professions need are information systems that are more intelligent, systems that can inte grate information from many sources, systems that analyze and syn thesize information and display it so that it may be applied directly in patient care-in other words, information that answers a question or even gives practical advice. In order to accomplish such objectives, work is needed to establish the scientific and theoretical basis for the use of computing and infor mation systems by health professionals. This is the research com ponent. In addition, there is the need for continued development and evaluation of practical information systems.

This series is intended for the rapidly increasing number of health care professionals who have rudimentary knowledge and experience in health care computing and are seeking opportunities to expand their horizons. It does not attempt to compete with the primers already on the market. Eminent international experts will edit, author, or contribute to each volume in order to provide comprehensive and current accounts of in novations and future trends in this quickly evolving field. Each book will be practical, easy to use, and weIl referenced. Our aim is for the series to encompass all of the health professions by focusing on specific professions, such as nursing, in individual volumes. However, integrated computing systems are only one tool for improving communication among members of the health care team. Therefore, it is our hope that the series will stimulate professionals to explore additional me ans of fostering interdisciplinary exchange. This se ries springs from a professional collaboration that has grown over the years into a highly valued personal friendship. Our joint values put people first. If the Computers in Health Care series lets us share those values by helping health care professionals to communicate their ideas for the benefit of patients, then our efforts will have succeeded.

Intended for nurses who would like to know more about the development of the computerized information systems on which they have become so dependent, Nursing and Computers: An Anthology is a wide-range introduction to the literature of this field. The editors have selected historical and contemporary papers to show both the systems at their inception and examples of how they have evolved. Of interest to both the generalist and the specialist, these articles examine the partnership between nurses and computers in the areas of administration, practice, research, and education.

Nurses and computers are increasingly becoming partners in health care. This comprehensive introduction to computers provides a foundation in computer basics and applications to nursing education and practice. It seeks to prepare students to use computers in their careers as learners and provide concepts that the future nurse will use in clinical practice.