Part I, Clinical information systems: a fourth generation

Despite the fact that cutting edge technologies are already at our doorsteps, most nurses are still struggling with old technologies of the 70s. The greatest stumbling block to change involving information technology is the nurses' unfavorable experience with the difficult and inefficient applications currently in place. Qualities of the fourth-generation clinical systems and the urgent need for technology education are outlined to help shape the development of the new generation of systems.