The Impact Of Standardized Nursing Terminology
Among the Resources in this module is the Rutherford (2008) article Standardized Nursing Language: What Does It Mean for Nursing Practice? In this article, the author recounts a visit to a local hospital to view the recent implementation of a new coding system.
During the visit, one of the nurses commented to her, “We document our care using standardized nursing languages but we don’t fully understand why we do” (Rutherford, 2008, para. 1).
How would you respond to a comment such as this one?
To Prepare:
- Review the concepts of informatics as presented in the Resources, particularly Rutherford, M. (2008) Standardized Nursing Language: What Does It Mean for Nursing Practice?
- Reflect on the role of a nurse leader as a knowledge worker.
- Consider how knowledge may be informed by data that is collected/accessed.
The Assignment:
In a 2- to 3-page paper, address the following:
- Explain how you would inform this nurse (and others) of the importance of standardized nursing terminologies.
- Describe the benefits and challenges of implementing standardized nursing terminologies in nursing practice. Be specific and provide examples.
- Be sure to support your paper with peer-reviewed research on standardized nursing terminologiesRUNNING HEAD: NURSING TERMINOLOGY 1
NURSING TERMINOLOGY 5The Impact of Standardized Nursing Terminology
SAMPLE
The Impact of Standardized Nursing Terminology
Importance of standardized terminologies
Terminologies in nursing are essential in underscoring the influence of continued learning in promoting the concept of care. This is based on the understanding that knowledge keeps improving and healthcare professionals sometimes find themselves going through stacks of big data in order to build relationships. This has brought the concept of big data which has also influenced the nature and capacity of each healthcare professional or business to integrate big data to their programs (Laureate Education (Executive Producer), 2012). However, in the absence of a standardized nursing terminology, the process of processing data, accessing information, improving knowledge, and sharing the wisdom of this process would be long, wasteful, and detrimental to the growth of nursing. To this extent, it is noteworthy that standard nursing terminology is of great importance to nursing. To begin with, it helps in organizing, and applying knowledge through a process of informatics (Rutherford, 2008). Terminologies that have formed part of the long-term practice are made essential to the continued development of the system and therefore promotes common understanding of the issues that affect nursing care. Secondly, the process of transforming data, information, and knowledge, into the wisdom to act has the capacity to help in promoting evidence-based practice. It is important to understand that the value of evidence-based nursing is based on the ability to codify and present knowledge collected through various elements of research (Rutherford, 2008). Care nurses would then be able to adopt the terminologies as means of communicating and generating accessibility to care materials in the long run.
It is noteworthy that the importance of nursing terminologies does not end there. In the event that a patient’s data records that they have low glucose levels and a history of diabetes in the patient’s family in addition to his own diagnosis that they may be suffering from diagnosis. The terminology of care defined at this stage may be used for decades or centuries until a time shall come when such a condition would have been determined to have more than one diagnosis (Laureate Education (Executive Producer), 2012; Thew, 2016). This understanding makes it possible to make decisions regarding the best cause of action and provide care for the patient appropriately. While this has the capacity to promote evidence-based practice. Furthermore, terminologies are important in sorting out data and information in helping to promote decision support systems. These decision support systems are often based on existing terminologies that are designed and implemented from nursing school. They include terms that help the nurses function more effectively in the long run. Finally, this understanding has the capacity of increasing knowledge of interrelationships that helps any practicing, education, or administrative nurse move from data to wisdom (Rutherford, 2008).
In this discussion therefore, noting the issues that are important in designating terminologies that enhance the development of the nursing profession builds the capacity of care nurses as well as nurse education. Terminologies are not meant to simplify complex medical issues. This has to be understood because it helps to determine the various elements of growth within the system of transforming community growth. It is therefore important to consider long term growth as part of the system that is perpetuated by terminologies that can be applied over time (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2017). In order to appreciate the importance of these standardized terminologies, it is important to look at some of the benefits as well as the challenges of these terminologies.
Benefits and Challenges of implementation of the standardized terminologies
Nursing informatics may be the foundation of knowledge in nursing, but the art of caring goes beyond the terminologies. The terminologies in nursing are essential in as far as they enhance the promotion of knowledge of nursing in the long term. It is the role of the nurse leader to balance between these terminologies in the art of care. They would utilize the data collected to support the knowledge they already have, or to improve on it, and by doing so, become more helpful to the society (Rutherford, 2008). This process has attendant benefits such as promoting effective communication between healthcare providers. Furthermore, it serves to increase visibility of nursing interventions and improvement in patient care in the long run. Enhanced data collection helps to evaluate nursing outcomes and by doing so, generate greater adherence to standards that promote care. This is because it creates an equalizing framework for different healthcare providers in the long run. Finally, the standardization of terminologies has the essential potential of facilitating the assessment of nursing competency (Rutherford, 2008; McGonigle & Mastrian, 2017). These benefits are essential in promoting long term development of nursing care and promotion of a more valuable system of care for patients.
Despite the benefits above, it is important to look at the challenges that influence care in the long term. To begin with, care is limited when the jargon that influences care is more informed by the categorization of symptoms rather than evaluating access to care (Laureate Education (Executive Producer), 2012; Thew, 2016). Secondly, it is noteworthy that terminologies create a standard which leaves no room for a nurse to use evidence-based practice or have any adjustments to meet their specific situations. To this extent, it is important to look at these challenges, not as drawbacks, but as part of the learning curve that individuals need to seek out for their own progressive growth of nursing care.
References
Laureate Education (Executive Producer). (2012). Data, information, knowledge and wisdom continuum. Baltimore, MD. Retrieved from http://mym.cdn.laureate-media.com/2dett4d/Walden/NURS/6051/03/mm/continuum/index.html
McGonigle, D., & Mastrian, K. G. (2017). Nursing informatics and the foundation of knowledge. Burlington: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Rutherford, M. A. (2008). Standardized nursing language: What does it mean for nursing practice? Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 13(1), 1-12.
Thew, J. (2016, April 19). BIG DATA MEANS BIG POTENTIAL, CHALLENGES FOR NURSE EXECS. Retrieved from Health Leaders: https://www.healthleadersmedia.com/nursing/big-data-means-big-potential-challenges-nurse-execsClick here to ORDER an A++ paper from our MASTERS and DOCTORATE WRITERS: