ANM Nursing Informatics and Healthcare Technology Flashcards

Which term describes the use of clinical data and analytics to identify trends, improve patient outcomes, and support evidence-based decision making at the unit level?

Answer: Clinical data analytics / nursing informatics

Clinical data analytics within nursing informatics involves systematically analyzing unit-level data (falls, infections, readmissions) to identify patterns and drive evidence-based improvements.

An ANM notices that nurses frequently override pharmacy-flagged drug-drug interaction alerts in the EHR. What is the most appropriate first response?

Answer: Conduct a review to determine whether the alerts are clinically appropriate or represent 'alert fatigue'

Frequent overrides often signal alert fatigue from low-specificity alerts; the ANM should analyze override patterns to determine whether alerts need recalibration or staff education is needed.

What is the primary benefit of barcode medication administration (BCMA) technology in a nursing unit?

Answer: It verifies the five rights of medication administration by matching patient, medication, dose, route, and time electronically

BCMA systems scan the patient's wristband and medication barcode to electronically verify all five rights at the point of care, significantly reducing medication administration errors.

In the context of healthcare IT, what does 'interoperability' mean and why is it important for an ANM's unit?

Answer: The ability of different health information systems and software to communicate, exchange data, and use shared information seamlessly

Interoperability enables the ANM's unit EHR to exchange data with pharmacy, lab, radiology, and other departments seamlessly, reducing communication errors and improving care coordination.

A new EHR module is being implemented on the ANM's unit. What is the ANM's primary role in this implementation process?

Answer: Champion adoption by ensuring staff are trained, providing real-time support, and surfacing workflow issues to the informatics team

The ANM serves as the unit-level change champion during EHR implementations, ensuring staff training is complete, supporting adoption, and communicating workflow concerns to the informatics team.

Which informatics concept refers to the degree to which a clinical system requires extra steps, workarounds, or parallel paper processes because it does not match actual nursing workflow?

Answer: Workflow friction / poor system usability

Workflow friction occurs when technology systems do not align with actual clinical practice, forcing nurses to create workarounds that can increase error risk and reduce efficiency.