How Can You Combat I.T. Culture Shock?
Nurse executives from several MEDITECH hospitals offer their experiences and tips for creating a tech-friendly culture of excellence.
(12/9/2009)

Implementing the right I.T. tools is important for hospitals to improve quality, but without organization-wide support, positive change can be difficult to achieve and impossible to maintain. Fortunately, chief nurse executives can play a major role in ensuring that their organizations are ready to accept and even welcome technologies which improve care delivery.

We recently heard from several nurse leaders who explained how they helped to create a culture of excellence at their hospitals, while integrating I.T. into their caregivers' day-to-day routines.


Julie Liersch, Vice President of Clinical Services at Jasper County Hospital
Education is the cornerstone of the whole I.T. adoption process. Everyone needs to know, not just what they need to do, but why they are doing it. For example, we did a lot to promote Bedside Verification (BV) to our nurses, including writing newsletter articles, creating a logo, and even designing BV T-shirts for everyone. If you hold back information, you'll make the technology seem scarier than it actually is.

Very often, a lack of staff buy-in indicates a lack of understanding in the system. That's why we regularly review I.T. competency for our staff, and we always ask "what can we do to help you?" These meetings are very important because they let our staff know we care and want to make a difference for them.

Always remind your staff that I.T. is a safety tool, not an efficiency tool. It is very likely that, early on, the bedside documenting process will slow nurses down. But they should know that, over time, the benefits of the system will outweigh any problems that may have existed originally.

Christi Watkins, Chief Clinical Officer at Citizens Memorial Healthcare
At Citizens, we focus on making I.T. just another part of everyone's workflow. I sometimes poke my head into offices to remind clinicians, "We are paperless now," because this is just how things are done; I.T. literacy is expected of them.

Along with promoting use of the system, we also promote this as a safety issue. It's especially important to highlight this with patients because being 100 percent electronic does not mean anything to them. They only care about length of stay, quality, and safety. One way we get the message across is with the placement of our computers in the rooms: Rather than have the computer between the nurse and the patient, we set them up side-by-side so the patient can see his or her own record as well as what the nurse is entering. This way, patients have more involvement in their own health care, as well as a better understanding of the reasons behind what we do.

Our nursing staff turned out to be our best educators, in ways you wouldn't necessarily expect. Once they fully understood our mission, they told other clinicians about it without being prompted. Word-of-mouth played a big role in getting others onboard. Furthermore, our nurses have some of the best tips on how to use the system in a practical sense. We have nursing IT specialists who are readily accessible, to make sure that anyone having trouble gets immediate answers to their questions-nipping problems in the bud, before they become bigger than life.

If you improve your quality, you will naturally improve your bottom line. If there's no other way to convince your board room to fully support I.T. adoption, tie it back to your reimbursements, which will go up significantly as a result of your efforts.


Cathy Woodard, RN, Chief Nurse Officer at Gila Regional Medical Center
Our program is based on constant engagement. We are regularly seeking input from our staff about how they are using the system, problems they have, and what could be improved. At the same time, we've learned to refrain from constantly telling nurses what they are doing wrong. Too often, we forget to reinforce what they are doing right and to give kudos when they're deserved.

Encouragement goes a long way, yet it is so often overlooked after a system is up and running. We instituted some fun events, like Root Beer Float Day, to let our staff know we really appreciate their hard work. If I have to be up at 1 a.m. making floats to be sure clinicians still feel positive about I.T., I'm willing to do it!

MEDITECH
Medical Information Technology, Inc.
MEDITECH Circle
Westwood, MA 02090
781-821-3000
www.meditech.com