Nursing Informatics Competency After Experiencing Simulated Electronic Health Records: Descriptive Study.

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Health Informatics
• Digital Health Learning

Background:

• Flexible online education is crucial for increasing the nursing workforce.
• Virtual simulation and adaptive learning technologies improve educational efficiency and outcomes.
• Nursing informatics education requires practical application of digital health tools.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of a simulated electronic health record (DocuCare) in an online graduate nursing informatics course.
• To assess graduate nursing students' informatics competency after using DocuCare.
• To identify specific areas of informatics competency impacted by the virtual simulation.

Main Methods:

• Adoption of a simulated electronic health record (DocuCare) in an online graduate nursing informatics course.
• Development of a DocuCare-based assignment for core nursing informatics concepts.
• Administration of a validated informatics survey to measure competency domains and overall level.

Main Results:

• Overall nursing informatics competency was between competent and proficient.
• Basic computer skills and roles domains exceeded the proficient level.
• Advanced computer skills, specifically clinical informatics, were at a competent to proficient level.

Conclusions:

• Simulated electronic health records like DocuCare are effective tools for enhancing nursing informatics competency in online graduate programs.
• The use of virtual simulation positively impacts students' understanding of core informatics concepts and roles.
• Online learning environments integrating adaptive technologies can successfully prepare nurses for digital health environments.