workforce
Future tense
Onboarding needs to constantly evolve to prepare new nurses for skills and roles that may not have been conceived today . To support nurses in delivering evidencebased , knowledge-driven care , they need to be trained in Clinical Decision Support ( CDS ) tools , which integrate with existing EHR systems . These tools help nurses access the latest evidence-based guidelines and care plans so that they can make data-enabled and efficient clinical decisions for their patients .
How can we prepare the nursing workforce for the new reality ?
By Tim Morris
As a former nurse , it breaks my
heart to know that more than 600 nurses have lost their lives fighting the COVID-19 pandemic . As part of the Future of Healthcare webinar series , I have spoken to many healthcare leaders to discuss how we can learn from the current pandemic and futureproof our healthcare systems . It was striking to hear from our presenters , including Karen Blake , head of clinical informatics at healthAlliance and Kate Renzenbrink , chief nursing and midwifery information officer at Bendigo Health , during the series how regions , like South Korea , who had firsthand experience of the SARS or MERS epidemics , and others that locked down fast had significantly lower transmission rates and associated mortality rates compared to others .
In life , there is often a reluctance to accept advice from others , especially from country to country . However , nurses around the world are willing to look to their colleagues for advice and support to learn from each other ’ s experience .
As Karen Blake voiced in our discussion , we need to learn from our past and equip the nursing workforce to be prepared for the next emergency or crisis .
ENHANCING NURSING WORKFLOW WITH TECHNOLOGY FOR PATIENTCENTRIC CARE MODEL Many hospitals have shifted their care delivery models to mitigate the risk of infection . In merely six weeks between April and May this year , there were close to 3,000 telehealth appointments at Bendigo Health , according to Renzenbrink . This is a marked increase from less than 200 appointments made last year .
Care delivery , especially for elective procedures , is becoming de-hospitalised
28 agedcareinsite . com . au from the acute hospital to the community as providers adopt patient-centric care ( PCC ) models .
Under the PCC delivery model , care is organised around the patient and puts the patient at the forefront of care decisions and actions . With the rise of digital health technologies including telehealth services , mobile apps and wearables , patients are more informed and engaged in their own health than ever before , and this is changing the dynamics of care provision and patient-clinician interactions .
As nurses work towards delivering care through PCC , they are taking on more active roles in educating and supporting patients and their caregivers with the right information to make the most informed decision about their own health . In these roles , nurses need ready access to knowledge , which is now delivered via technology .
Care plans , which are integrated into electronic health record ( EHR ) systems , allow nurses to have quick access to past history and evidence-based knowledge , enabling them to provide better care for patients , reducing information variability and preventing potential omissions of care .
BUILDING DIGITAL HEALTH CAPABILITIES IN THE NURSING WORKFORCE There is a need for organisations to invest in upskilling the digital capabilities of their nursing workforce . Organisations need to understand the diverse knowledge levels surrounding information technology that exist within their current nursing workforce
In New Zealand , the nursing workforce is older , with 43 per cent aged 50 or above [ i ] . Similarly , in Australia , about 49 per cent of the nursing workforce is aged 45 or above [ ii ] . Ongoing education and upskilling support needs to take into consideration generational gaps that exist in digital literacy and be willing to provide appropriate training and education programs .
OPENING CAREER PATHWAYS AND LEADERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES COVID-19 has put healthcare systems under immense pressure and many nurses have had to step up to provide increased levels of care . Their integral contributions to care delivery should be extended to leadership roles , especially in digital health .
With the increased usage of digital tools and technology , nurses today are leveraging data and technology to lead improvements in patient care . Nursing informatics , for example , is a new speciality where nurses study patient data to make knowledgedriven decisions for their patients .
Investing and advocating for the expansion of nursing leadership roles is more critical than ever today . As we commemorate 200 years of nursing this year , we are reminded that the world needs another 5.9 million nurses globally [ iii ] .
One in five New Zealand nurses are looking to retire in the next five years , causing a potential threat to healthcare staffing [ iv ] . Nursing workforce projections in Australia have also estimated a shortfall of approximately 123,000 nurses in the next 10 years [ v ] . Having nursing voices in leadership and decision-making can help to support retention policies and ensure that we continue supporting future generations of nurses .
Through the many health crises that have plagued us for centuries , nurses have raised their hands and stood at the front line to save and improve lives . That is what nurses do . It is time we recognise their value and equip them with technology , so that they can continue pushing the boundaries in healthcare . ■
Tim Morris is the commercial portfolio and partnership director at Elsevier . For references go to www . nursingreview . com . au .