[Computerization and nursing: in search of an ideal!]

Area of Science:

• Nursing Informatics
• Health Information Systems
• Management Information Systems

Context:

• Existing computerized systems often fail to align with the specific information requirements of nursing practice.
• A lack of a defined ideal state for nursing computerization hinders analysis of current system capabilities.

Purpose:

• To describe the ideal situation for nursing computerization by identifying key criteria.
• To establish a benchmark for evaluating current nursing information systems.

Summary:

• A methodological study identified 43 criteria for ideal management and data handling in nursing practice.
• These criteria were validated using the DELPHI technique with 22 expert nurses in computerization.
• The research provides a foundation for needs assessments and measuring the gap between current systems and ideal nursing informatics.

Impact:

• This study facilitates future needs assessments for nursing information systems.
• It enables the measurement of current system capacity against defined ideal nursing data management standards.
• It paves the way for developing more effective and compatible computerized systems for nursing practice.