Hospital information systems. Nursing's integral role

Nursing's integral contribution to the process of selecting and implementing a hospital information system is essential to the success of the system. This process, defined as the systems life cycle, comprises four phases: analysis, design, development and implementation. Defining the role of nursing in each of these phases clearly indicates the significance of input from the hospital's largest user group. Explored here are the contributions nurses can provide in each phase of the systems life cycle in order to promote optimal success of a hospital information system.