NURS 6051 Discussion: The Inclusion of Nurses in the Systems Development Life Cycle

In the media introduction to this module, it was suggested that you as a nurse have an important role in the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC). With a focus on patient care and outcomes, nurses may not always see themselves as contributors to the development of new systems. However, as you may have observed in your own experience, exclusion of nurse contributions when implementing systems can have dire consequences.

In this Discussion, you will consider the role you might play in systems development and the ramifications of not being an active participant in systems development.

To Prepare:

  • Review the steps of the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) as presented in the Resources.
  • Reflect on your own healthcare organization and consider any steps your healthcare organization goes through when purchasing and implementing a new health information technology system.
  • Consider what a nurse might contribute to decisions made at each stage of the

SDLC when planning for new health information technology.

By Day 3 of Week 9

  • Post a description of what you believe to be the consequences of a healthcare organization not involving nurses in each stage of the SDLC when purchasing and implementing a new health information technology system. Provide specific examples of potential issues at each stage of the SDLC and explain how the inclusion of nurses may help address these issues. Then, explain whether you had any input in the selection and planning of new health information technology systems in your nursing practice or healthcare organization and explain potential impacts of being included or not in the decision-making process. Be specific and provide examples.

By Day 6 of Week 9

  • Respond to at least two of your colleagues* on two different days, by offering additional thoughts regarding the examples shared, SDLC-related issues, and ideas on how the inclusion of nurses might have impacted the example described by your colleagues.

*Note: Throughout this program, your fellow students are referred to as colleagues.

The Inclusion of Nurses in the Systems Development Life Cycle Sample Paper

The Systems Development Life Cycle is a framework that aims at improving care quality through the implementation of clinical information systems. It helps in managing organization projects and information flow through planning, implementation, monitoring, and control. In the healthcare systems, nurse informaticists play an important role in the incorporation of SDLC by fusing applications of information technology with clinical nursing care for health improvement purposes from inception to completion of system projects. 

The SDLC has five main stages: planning and design, implementation, monitoring and control, and maintenance (Ross, 2018). The inclusion of nurses in all these phases is essential for the best healthcare delivery and patient outcomes.

Nurses’ Roles in Various Phases of SDLC

The planning and designing phase is the most important in ensuring the success of the new IT project systems in an organization. The planning phase requires multidisciplinary teamwork where nurses’ input is required. In this phase, the estimation of costs, timelines, deliverables, and the scope of the new systems are discussed and verified. The nurses, especially nurse informaticists, are well-endowed with technical know-how that is vital in proper planning and designing (Verma & Gupta, 2017). Their exclusion risks the system implementation failure through inappropriate requirement identification and health information-related scope description.

The implementation phase requires the services and input of the nurses. The nurses from the largest care provider group in a healthcare organization. Information system implementation requires translation of the system project scope and plan into action. The nurses are, therefore, the best suited due to their hands-on and quality patient interaction skills. The time nurses spend on caring for patients is reduced by the introduction of information systems and their inclusion in the actualization of the IT system project plan (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, n.d.a). The exclusion of nurses in the implementation of SDLC risks poor coordination of project plans with the realization of the objectives.

The project monitoring and control phase requires adequate and timely feedback and communication. The nurses have good communication skills that enable their interprofessional cooperation with physicians. When purchasing new information systems, the health organization should consider potential monitors and controllers for quality purposes. Nursing informatics has provided nurses with relevant information technology resources to manage and maintain data flow in the organization (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2017). Nursing management skills are necessary for quality control and assurance of data management in the new systems (Moghaddasi, 2019). The maintenance depends on the stakeholders involved in the implementation and control phases where nurses’ roles were implicated as well.

My Experience and Contribution

The need for technological advancement in healthcare necessitated my healthcare organization to upgrade the information flow and reduce patient waiting time. Therefore, electronic health records were used to store, manage, share, and retrieve patent information among care providers. I had a role in the implementation phase where collaboration between nurses and the technical team was required. The knowledge and understanding of the application were established during shift reporting and communication of patient lab results.

Conclusion

The nurses form the backbone of direct patient care which also requires ethical, legal, and medical obligations. The nurses’ role in the implementation of new information systems is required because their input complements the technological and administrative requirements. In most cases, the nurses act as foot soldiers in executing and implementing new systems for best quality outcomes. Their roles in planning are also essential in promoting the ethical obligations of advocating for best patient outcomes. Their exclusion also risks project failure due to a lack of coordination from the planning to execution of the system development and maintenance.

References