Discussion The Application of Data to Problem Solving NURS 6051

Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

Sample Answer for Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051 Included After Question

In the modern era, there are few professions that do not to some extent rely on data. Stockbrokers rely on market data to advise clients on financial matters. Meteorologists rely on weather data to forecast weather conditions, while realtors rely on data to advise on the purchase and sale of property. In these and other cases, data not only helps solve problems, but adds to the practitioner’s and the discipline’s body of knowledge.

Of course, the nursing profession also relies heavily on data. The field of nursing informatics aims to make sure nurses have access to the appropriate date to solve healthcare problems, make decisions in the interest of patients, and add to knowledge.

In this Discussion, you will consider a scenario that would benefit from access to data and how such access could facilitate both problem-solving and knowledge formation.

RESOURCES

Be sure to review the Learning Resources before completing this activity.
Click the weekly resources link to access the resources.

WEEKLY RESOURCES

To Prepare:

  • Reflect on the concepts of informatics and knowledge work as presented in the Resources.
  • Consider a hypothetical scenario based on your own healthcare practice or organization that would require or benefit from the access/collection and application of data. Your scenario may involve a patient, staff, or management problem or gap.

BY DAY 3 OF WEEK 1

Post a description of the focus of your scenario. Describe the data that could be used and how the data might be collected and accessed. What knowledge might be derived from that data? How would a nurse leader use clinical reasoning and judgment in the formation of knowledge from this experience?

BY DAY 6 OF WEEK 1

Respond to at least two of your colleagues* on two different days, asking questions to help clarify the scenario and application of data, or offering additional/alternative ideas for the application of nursing informatics principles.

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

A Sample Answer For the Assignment: Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

Title: Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

Telephone triage 

The phone rings on a busy Saturday afternoon and the pleasant voice of a registered nurse answers professionally, greeting the caller seeking advice and care. This could be a day for a typical for an ambulatory telephone triage nurse. The concept of telephone triage and consultation can be one of a registered nurse using evidence-based algorithms from electronic databases. The nurses, like most nurses, working in a progressive health care industry are using technology to counsel patients. According to McGonigue & Mastrian, (2022), “For information to be valuable, it must be accessible, accurate, timely, complete, cost-effective, flexible, reliable, relevant, simple, verifiable, and secure.” p.9. 

This information could be valuable to many leaders in the healthcare team. Accessibility would be easiest in form of electronic records and telephone recordings. McGonigue & Mastrian (2022), argue, “Computer science offers extremely valuable tools that when used skillfully, can facilitate the acquisition and manipulation of data and information by nurses, who then can synthesize the data into an evolving knowledge and wisdom base ”p. 35). Accurate and timely information could be an interest in nursing quality and control. One argument on how telephone triage could be cost-effective is that paying nurses to man the phone lines is cheaper than using inappropriate resources such as the emergency room to care that can be directed elsewhere. Flexibility, reliability, simple, verifiable and secure would require a more in-depth look into the nature of telephone triage and program development within a system, but the concept of triage nursing seems to be malleable to the interest of how the data would be used. 

An additional source of centralized evidence-based algorithm software program could also be used and from my research is being used in assisting the nurses to effectively triage the caller and ensure best practice standards. Documentation done by triage nurses would have data from the callers that are subjective and objective, the nursing assessment, and recommendations based on the call. 

From this data collection, multiple departments within healthcare could use this or would have an interest in this data collection. Intradisciplinary teams have an opportunity to look at how to retrieve data from electronic retrieval of health records or from recorded lines if those are being used.  An ambulatory nurse manager might be interested in using the data as a system educator of staff development and improvement strategy to support the training needs within their triage staff. A quality nurse might want to use this data to help in creating of protocol development and safety improvements for effective triage and outcomes. Ambulatory providers could use data to see the patient population’s interests and barriers to care and from there use it to modify their practices.  Health information technology departments within health care organizations could be supportive of this nursing department in implementing programs in making documentation more time efficient and detailed. Nursing leadership could use this as a cost-effective strategy. 

                All departments could build off one another and become temporary team members to gain knowledge and benefit in patient care and satisfaction. Emerging roles could be created as, “Teams are working across boundaries of organizations and will be organized around a particular patient.” (Nagale et al, 2017, p. 215).   Within most healthcare systems the mission and visions of these organizations are built on patient outcomes and patient centered care. An informatics nurse specialist could support patients, nurses, providers, and leaders with the interpretation of data analytics and therefore participate in applying new knowledge from data to wisdom. (Nauright et al., 1999)

This hypothetical scenario of a nurse working at a telephone triage call center would benefit immensely from data access, problem-solving and the process of knowledge formation. In a real-time, scenario, I could see how this could impact patient care and outcomes on a global level and be a perfect role for a nurse informatics specialist to pilot.

Discussion The Application of Data to Problem Solving NURS 6051
Discussion The Application of Data to Problem Solving NURS 6051

References 

Nauright,L.P.,Moneyham,L.& Williamson,J.1999. Telephone triage and consultation: An emerging role 

for nurses,Nursing Outlook, 47(5) , 219-226.https://doi.org/10.1016/S0029-6554(99)90054-4. 

 Nagle, L., Sermeus, W., & Junger, A. (2017).  Evolving Role of the Nursing Informatics Specialist Links to an external site. Links to an external site.. In J. Murphy, W. Goosen, &  P. Weber  (Eds.), Forecasting Competencies for Nurses in the Future of Connected Health (212-221). 

McGonigle, D., & Mastrian, K. G. (2022). Nursing informatics and the foundation of knowledge (5th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning. 

A Sample Answer 2 For the Assignment: Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

Title: Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

As of November 30th, 2020, the Florida Health Department states that there are a total of 999,913 positive cases, and there are 54,864 residents with COVID that are currently hospitalized (Florida’s COVID-19 Data and Surveillance Dashboard, n.d.). Out of these statistics, the median age of these cases is 40, however, the majority of the hospitalizations with COVID complications come from the age bracket of 65-74 years old, with an approximate 20% of hospitalizations (COVID-19 Summary for Florida, n.d.), compared to the 8% that the 35-44-year-old bracket comprises of (COVID-19 Summary for Florida, n.d.). As an ER nurse, I spend many shifts working in the “mitigation” area, which is where my hospital places patients with any COVID, flu-like or respiratory symptoms. Many times, the patients are stable enough to be swabbed and discharged as they await their results via telephone, (unless we swab them with the rapid tests that are designed for admission purposes, but the provider can decide which is best). When the patient is stable enough to be discharged, they are oftentimes discharged with a home monitoring kit that includes a pulse oximetry as well as a thermometer. During the discharge education, I help the patients understand how to read the pulse oximetry and encourage them to take their O2 saturation levels several times a day to ensure there are no drastic changes.

When they are discharged with this kit, we also educate the patient on a specific app that is downloaded on their mobile device, and they can log their vital signs as well as speak to a healthcare member that can advise them on any changes. In a study conducted by (Shah et al., 2020), it is noted that COVID-19 has been considered to, in some cases, induce “silent hypoxia”, in which the O2 sats drop below 92% on room air without any other symptoms. Having this tool can be a tremendous benefit to patients that are discharged with COVID symptoms. The devices themselves are easy  to use, and people of all ages can easily grasp the concept. The patients are also educated on what symptoms require immediate medical attention. Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

However, when it comes to explaining the home monitoring application that needs to be downloaded into their smartphones for

appropriate vital sign documentation, and other benefits, the older demographic is usually left confused or unable to participate (due to lack of smartphone, etc). In many cases, patients in this demographic with COVID symptoms or that are known positives, will return to the ED because they feel as if they don’t have any other option and don’t understand why they are not “feeling better”.  Although this may sometimes be the better alternative, it is possible that if the patient had the technological resources, they could’ve avoided a visit to the ER and increase the chances of compromising themselves or others.

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(Czaja, 2019) mentions in an article that by the year 2030, over 20% percent of the U.S. population is expected to be over the age of 65, with technological advances increasing as well. In the same article, (Czaja, 2019) also points out the benefits of technology assisting in-home health status checks, as well as a great way to monitor patients from home. Due to all of these combined benefits, my proposal would be to discharge these patients that are elderly, who don’t own a smartphone or don’t understand how to use it, with a pre-set mobile device that is easy to function in yet is able to help the patient document their O2 sats. The device will only be able to document oxygen levels, receive calls from the home monitoring personal or call out to them. The colors on the preset app. that will automatically load will be represented as Green= 100%-96% Yellow= 95%-92% Red= 92% or lower. It won’t be complicated for the patient to use,  yet can help the patient get the attention that they need from home, with the possibility of avoiding a hospital visit.

The nurse leader can use the data collected from the home monitoring company from these devices to analyze how efficient this system will work for this age group on a weekly basis. In the EHR, the staff nurses will document on their discharge portion that the patient was sent home with this specific device so an exact count will be noted. If the patient returns to the hospital for the same symptoms, it can be due to the effectiveness of the device, or a lack of education. Either way, gathering this data can be beneficial in helping to reduce the number of unnecessary visits to the ER, or on the contrary, can help the patient before it gets worse. As more COVID cases emerge in the state of Florida, where a large portion of the population is over 65%, a device such as this can be instrumental in helping those that are most vulnerable but don’t work well with modern technology.

References

COVID-19 Summary for Florida. (n.d.). Florida Department of Health, Division of Disease Control and Health Protection. Retrieved December 1, 2020, from http://ww11.doh.state.fl.us/comm/_partners/covid19_report_archive/cases-monitoring-and-pui-information/county-report/county_reports_latest.pdf

Czaja, S. J. (2019). Usability of technology for older adults: Where are we and where do we need to be. Journal of Usability Studies, 14(2), 61–64. https://eds-a-ebscohost-com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=1&sid=4ca1b86e-2878-403e-b2bb-560ef0ae8e1b%40sdc-v-sessmgr01

Florida’s COVID-19 data and surveillance dashboard. (n.d.). Florida Department of Health, Division of Disease Control and Health Protection. Retrieved November 30, 2020, from https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/96dd742462124fa0b38ddedb9b25e429

Shah, S., Majmudar, K., Stein, A., Gupta, N., Suppes, S., Karamanis, M., Capannari, J., Sethi, S., & Patte, C. (2020). Novel use of home pulse oximeter monitoring in COVID-19 patients discharged from the emergency department identifies need for hospitalization. Society for Academic Emergency Medicine, 681–692. https://doi.org/10.1111/acem.14053

A Sample Answer 3 For the Assignment: Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

Title: Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

Thank you for this informative post. It is nice to know that they have these kits available for patients to continuously monitor themselves at home. In this technology filled era in which we now live, healthcare providers need to be vigilant and engage directly with the patients especially when giving discharge instructions or teaching (Laureate Education, 2018). The nurses who complete the discharge instructions really have a vital role in the implementation of this data collection with the home kits.

I think that your pre-set device would be a great idea especially for the elderly. As healthcare professionals, we continuously receive and analyze data to become more proactive and provide the best possible care for their patients (McGoningle & Mastrian, 2017). An analysis of the acquired data from your device could serve a catalyst for additional changes in home monitoring during this pandemic. For example, your device could be remotely linked to a database (like remote telemetry monitoring) where a healthcare professional is assigned to monitor the uploaded data. That healthcare worker would then be able to call and check in on the elderly or alert emergency responders if the oxygen level becomes dangerously low. Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

Laureate Education (Producer). (2018). Health Informatics and Population Health: Trends in Population Health [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

McGonigle, D., & Mastrian, K. G. (2017). Nursing informatics and the foundation of knowledge (4th ed.). Chapter 2, “Introduction to Information, Information Science, and Information Systems” (p. 30)

A Sample Answer 4 For the Assignment: Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

Title: Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

When I was researching my own scenario for this discussion, I came across Big Data examples and decreasing avoidable ER visits was on the list (Durcevic, 2019). In the article pertaining to the ER, a program was created in California called PreManage ED (Durcevic, 2019). The program helps other facilities to be able to access a patient’s chart who was treated at another neighboring facility (Durcevic, 2019). This helped the county decrease time, resources, and cost to patients who were chronic ER patients (Durcevic, 2019).

That is very awesome that your hospital provides COVID patients, who are discharged home to manage symptoms, an at-home monitoring kit and a smartphone application to track their data. As far as I know, the hospital I work for in Michigan doesn’t do this. The only app I know of that the state government has spoken of is Mi COVID Alert (Michigan.gov, 2020). This app is for contact tracing only, not for tracking symptoms (Michigan.gov, 2020). Is this app only available to your hospital or the state of Florida?

Reference

Durcevic, S. (2019). 18 Examples Of Big Data Analytics In Healthcare That Can Save People. Datapine. https://www.datapine.com/blog/big-data-examples-in-healthcare/

Michigan.gov. (2020). How the app works. SOM – State of Michigan. https://www.michigan.gov/coronavirus/0,9753,7-406-99891_102592_102594—,00.html

A Sample Answer For the Assignment: Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

Title: Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

As you rightly indicated, health informatics has contributed greatly to the effective application of patient data. Data must be applied correctly to improve overall patient outcomes. As stated explained by Walden University, artificial intelligence (AI) will be an added value to the healthcare industry because of its diagnostic capabilities (Walden University, 2018). A systematic review conducted by Choudhury & Asan (2020), highlighted the pivotal role of healthcare professionals in the safe application of AI. Proper utilization of AI will require dedicated professionals to carry out the human activities that are necessary for this software to operate. There will be a better outcome of diagnosing diseases in a timely manner because providers will have the luxury of diagnosing patients by documenting patient assessment, medical history, symptoms, etc. Overall, I believe that real-life scenarios will be needed to support the effectiveness and safety of AI.

Reference

Walden University, LLC. (Producer). (2018). Health Informatics and Population Health:            Trends in Population Health [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Choudhury, A., & Asan, O. (2020). Role of Artificial Intelligence in Patient Safety Outcomes: Systematic Literature Review. JMIR Medical Informatics8(7), e18599. https://doi.org/10.2196/18599

Submission and Grading Information

Discussion The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051 Grading Criteria

To access your rubric:

Week 1 Discussion Rubric

Post by Day 3 and Respond by Day 6 of Week 1

To participate in this Discussion:

Week 1 Discussion

Discussion The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051 Rubric Detail

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Content
Name: NURS_5051_Module01_Week01_Discussion_Rubric

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Excellent Good Fair Poor
Main Posting

Points Range: 45 (45%) – 50 (50%)

Answers all parts of the discussion question(s) expectations with reflective critical analysis and synthesis of knowledge gained from the course readings for the module and current credible sources.

Supported by at least three current, credible sources.

Written clearly and concisely with no grammatical or spelling errors and fully adheres to current APA manual writing rules and style.

Points Range: 40 (40%) – 44 (44%)

Responds to the discussion question(s) and is reflective with critical analysis and synthesis of knowledge gained from the course readings for the module.

At least 75% of post has exceptional depth and breadth.

Supported by at least three credible sources.

Written clearly and concisely with one or no grammatical or spelling errors and fully adheres to current APA manual writing rules and style.

Points Range: 35 (35%) – 39 (39%)

Responds to some of the discussion question(s).

One or two criteria are not addressed or are superficially addressed.

Is somewhat lacking reflection and critical analysis and synthesis.

Somewhat represents knowledge gained from the course readings for the module.

Post is cited with two credible sources.

Written somewhat concisely; may contain more than two spelling or grammatical errors.

Contains some APA formatting errors.

Points Range: 0 (0%) – 34 (34%)

Does not respond to the discussion question(s) adequately.

Lacks depth or superficially addresses criteria.

Lacks reflection and critical analysis and synthesis.

Does not represent knowledge gained from the course readings for the module.

Contains only one or no credible sources.

Not written clearly or concisely.

Contains more than two spelling or grammatical errors.

Does not adhere to current APA manual writing rules and style.
Main Post: Timeliness

Points Range: 10 (10%) – 10 (10%)

Posts main post by day 3.

Points Range: 0 (0%) – 0 (0%)

Points Range: 0 (0%) – 0 (0%)

Points Range: 0 (0%) – 0 (0%)
Does not post by day 3.
First Response

Points Range: 17 (17%) – 18 (18%)

Response exhibits synthesis, critical thinking, and application to practice settings.

Responds fully to questions posed by faculty.

Provides clear, concise opinions and ideas that are supported by at least two scholarly sources.

Demonstrates synthesis and understanding of learning objectives.

Communication is professional and respectful to colleagues.

Responses to faculty questions are fully answered, if posed.

Response is effectively written in standard, edited English.

Points Range: 15 (15%) – 16 (16%)

Response exhibits critical thinking and application to practice settings.

Communication is professional and respectful to colleagues.

Responses to faculty questions are answered, if posed.

Provides clear, concise opinions and ideas that are supported by two or more credible sources.

Response is effectively written in standard, edited English.

Points Range: 13 (13%) – 14 (14%)

Response is on topic and may have some depth.

Responses posted in the discussion may lack effective professional communication.

Responses to faculty questions are somewhat answered, if posed.

Response may lack clear, concise opinions and ideas, and a few or no credible sources are cited.

Points Range: 0 (0%) – 12 (12%)

Response may not be on topic and lacks depth.

Responses posted in the discussion lack effective professional communication.

Responses to faculty questions are missing.

No credible sources are cited.
Second Response

Points Range: 16 (16%) – 17 (17%)

Response exhibits synthesis, critical thinking, and application to practice settings.

Responds fully to questions posed by faculty.

Provides clear, concise opinions and ideas that are supported by at least two scholarly sources.

Demonstrates synthesis and understanding of learning objectives.

Communication is professional and respectful to colleagues.

Responses to faculty questions are fully answered, if posed.

Response is effectively written in standard, edited English.

Points Range: 14 (14%) – 15 (15%)

Response exhibits critical thinking and application to practice settings.

Communication is professional and respectful to colleagues.

Responses to faculty questions are answered, if posed.

Provides clear, concise opinions and ideas that are supported by two or more credible sources.

Response is effectively written in standard, edited English.

Points Range: 12 (12%) – 13 (13%)

Response is on topic and may have some depth.

Responses posted in the discussion may lack effective professional communication.

Responses to faculty questions are somewhat answered, if posed.

Response may lack clear, concise opinions and ideas, and a few or no credible sources are cited.

Points Range: 0 (0%) – 11 (11%)

Response may not be on topic and lacks depth.

Responses posted in the discussion lack effective professional communication.

Responses to faculty questions are missing.

No credible sources are cited.
Participation

Points Range: 5 (5%) – 5 (5%)

Meets requirements for participation by posting on three different days.

Points Range: 0 (0%) – 0 (0%)

Points Range: 0 (0%) – 0 (0%)

Points Range: 0 (0%) – 0 (0%)
Does not meet requirements for participation by posting on 3 different days.

Total Points: 100

A Sample Answer 6 For the Assignment: Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

Title: Discussion: The Application of Data to Problem-Solving NURS 6051

Healthcare technology is essential in patient care. As healthcare professionals, we must always be ready to embrace change. Nurses must be aware of available healthcare technology for problem-solving skills, which will help improve patient care. Nursing informatics integrates nursing science with information technology to identify, analyze and communicate healthcare data (Kassam et al., 2017). Easy access to medical records is essential in the provision of quality healthcare services. Utilization and application of knowledge from healthcare foundation is the basis of nursing science (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2021).

One scenario that I would use informatics is in immunizations. In my current place of work, I work with parents and healthcare providers on vaccination records for patients. A problem arises when families have to relocate to other states without their vaccination records. These parents are not sure whether their children have been vaccinated, and they must the previous state immunization registries. It would thus be essential to have a centralized immunization registry. This system will track the vaccine given to patients and the due dates for the vaccines. Healthcare providers can thus access patient vaccination records and use them to make clinical decisions.

There is a lot of knowledge that can come from this data. Healthcare professionals can determine vaccination rates and map out areas of potential outbreaks. Nurse leaders are critical in ensuring the quality and safety of healthcare services (Goh, Ang & Della, 2018). Nurse leaders can utilize judgment and clinical reasoning with knowledge from this data to discuss reasons for the low uptake of immunization. This can help them to develop policies to ensure that patients and communities are educated on the benefits of vaccinations. Nurse leaders can also be aware of contraindications of vaccines for specific patients by having access to the central database. A centralized vaccine database is beneficial not only to the patient but also to the healthcare professionals. Patients will receive vaccines that will help them, and healthcare professionals will have an efficient vaccination system.

I have spent the last 10 years working in emergency rooms as a staff nurse. One of the biggest challenges that my department faces regularly is delays with getting admitted patients out of the ED and onto their assigned units. These delays negatively impact the patients waiting for emergency treatment in the lobby and hallway stretchers. There are a number of factors that can prolong ED length of stay. Some of these include lack of bed availability due to hospital overcrowding, treatment delays such as loss of IV access, and delays caused by hospital personnel during the handoff report process (Paling et. al, 2020). Some of these factors, such as hospital overcrowding, are unavoidable and difficult to work around, which is why it is important for hospitals to assess which factors they can control to expedite patient flow out of the emergency room.

For my hospital’s scenario, the emergency department would collect data about admission delays that are specifically caused by disruptions in the nursing telephone report process. In my current workplace, there is not a standardized electronic handoff form, despite the fact that several studies have demonstrated the efficiency and increased patient safety outcomes associated with the transition to standardized electronic nursing report (Wolak et al., 2020). Instead, the ED nurse calls the receiving unit on the telephone, gives a verbal patient care handoff, and then transfers the patient to their hospital room. By collecting data about where in the handoff process delays are occurring, the ED could try to streamline the handoff process with the medical floors.

The emergency department nurses would collect quantitative data about the length of time between the first attempt to call report to the medical floor, and the time of the patient’s actual departure from the ED. The data would be recorded in the section of the EMR called “time to disposition” for each patient that is admitted. The ED leadership team could then pull a certain number of charts per month (or all the admission charts, if time allowed) and assess how long it takes on average for patient transfer to happen after report. Generally, most hospitals set their goals for disposition time for handoff and transfer within a 30-minute window (Potts et. al., 2018). If there are frequent delays causing transfer time to take greater than 30 minutes, the ED leadership team or unit-based council could meet with leadership from the floors where patient transfer takes the longest. By demonstrating the hard numbers associated with patient care delays, the teams could better understand the factors that lead to admission delays and work together to find solutions that expedite the admissions process.

References:

Paling, S., Lambert, J., Clouting, J., González-Esquerré, J., & Auterson, T. (2020). Waiting times in emergency departments: Exploring the factors associated with longer patient waits for emergency care in England using routinely collected daily data. Emergency Medicine Journalhttps://doi.org/10.1136/emermed-2019-208849

Potts, L., Ryan, C., Diegel-Vacek, L., & Murchek, A. (2018). Improving patient flow from the emergency department utilizing a standardized electronic nursing handoff process. JONA: The Journal of Nursing Administration48(9), 432–436. https://doi.org/10.1097/nna.0000000000000645

Wolak, E., Jones, C., Leeman, J., & Madigan, C. (2020). Improving throughput for patients admitted from the Emergency Department. Journal of Nursing Care Quality35(4), 380–385. https://doi.org/10.1097/ncq.0000000000000462