1. Chapter 25 by Dee McGonigle and Kathleen Mastrian
Nursing Informatics and the Foundation of Knowledge

2. Objectives Assess nursing knowledge.
Explore the contribution of nursing informatics to the foundation of knowledge.

3. Key Terms Defined Codify Data Data-Centric Information
Information Technology
Codify - To classify, reduce to code or articulate.
Data - Raw fact; lacks meaning.
Data-Centric - Data is the central focus.
Information - Data that are interpreted, organized, or structured; data that is processed using knowledge or data made functional through the application of knowledge.
Information Technology (IT) - use of hardware, software, services, and supporting infrastructure to manage and deliver information using voice, data, and video or the use of technologies from computing, electronics, and telecommunications to process and distribute information in digital and other forms; anything related to computing technology, such as networking, hardware, software, the Internet, or the people that work with these technologies. Many hospitals have IT departments for managing the computers, networks, and other technical areas of the healthcare industry.

4. Key Terms Defined Knowledge Knowledge Acquisition Knowledge-Centric
Knowledge Dissemination
Knowledge Generation
Knowledge - The awareness and understanding of a set of information and ways that information can be made useful to support a specific task or arrive at a decision; abounds with others’ thoughts and information; information that is synthesized so that relationships are identified and formalized; understanding that comes through a process of interaction or experience with world around us ; info that has judgment applied to it or meaning extracted from it; processed information that helps to clarify or explain some portion of our environment or world that we can use as a basis for action or upon which we can act.
Knowledge Acquisition - Act of acquiring or getting knowledge.
Knowledge-Centric - Knowledge is the central focus.
Knowledge Dissemination - Distribution and sharing of knowledge.
Knowledge Generation - Creating new knowledge by changing and evolving knowledge based on your experience, education, and input from others.

5. Key Terms Defined Knowledge Management System Knowledge Repositories
Knowledge processing
Knowledge Worker
Nursing Informatics
Knowledge Management System (KM) -A repository of information that contains the latest collective expertise based on experience and research. The knowledge is typically stored in a computerized system that promotes easy access for use. Nurse knowledge workers must be able to access, use and share these new informatics tools since “A well-designed IT-based knowledge management system (KMS) has become an ever more central force in improving the quality of care in competitive e-health environments” (Hsia, et al, ¶ 4). Capturing the explicit and tacit forms of knowledge will be paramount to truly harness nursing knowledge.
Knowlecge processing-The activity or process of gathering or collecting, perceiving, analyzing, synthesizing, saving or storing, manipulating, conveying, and transmitting knowledge.
Knowledge Repositories -Collections of information made available to an organization’s workers to support and inform their work. Markus refers to the knowledge repositories as “organizational memory systems” (¶ 1). These memory systems gained popularity for help desk personnel who could access and reuse knowledge of solutions to similar problems that clients seek help on. Healthcare is an arena that could use the knowledge management systems (KMS) or knowledge repositories.
Knowledge Worker - Work with information and generate information and knowledge as a product.
Nursing Informatics - A specialty that integrates nursing science, computer science, and information science to manage and communicate data, information, knowledge and wisdom in nursing practice; Nursing informatics facilitates the integration of data, information, and knowledge to support patients, nurses, and other providers in their decision-making in all roles and settings. This support is accomplished through the use of information structures, information processes, and information technology; “a specialty that integrates nursing science, computer science, and information science to manage and communicate data, information, and knowledge” (Staggers & Thompson, 2002, p. 260); synthesis of nursing science, information science, computer science and cognitive science to facilitate the management of healthcare data for the improvement of patient care and advancement of the nursing profession.

6. The Foundation of Knowledge Model © 2007 (refer to model) has provided a framework for examining the dynamic interrelationships between data, information, and knowledge used to meet healthcare delivery system’s, organizations’, patients’ and nurses’ needs.
At its base, the model has bits, bytes (computer terms for chunks of information), data and information in a random representation.
Growing out of the base are separate ‘cones of light’ that expand as they reflect upward and represent knowledge acquisition, knowledge generation, and knowledge dissemination.
At the intersection of the cones and forming a new cone is knowledge processing.
Encircling and cutting through the knowledge cones is feedback which acts on and may transform any or all aspects of knowledge represented by the cones
Early on in our education as nurses, we focus our conscious attention mainly on knowledge acquisition and depend on our instructors and others to process, generate and disseminate knowledge.
As we become more comfortable with the science of nursing, we begin to ‘take over’ some of the other knowledge functions.
As nurse knowledge workers, information is our primary resource and when we deal with information it is done in overlapping phases.

7. Foundation of Knowledge Model
How do nurses use information?
How is knowledge viewed?
What is explicit knowledge?
What is tacit knowledge?
We are acquiring, processing or assimilating and retaining, and using this information to generate and disseminate knowledge
Knowledge is thought of as either explicit or tacit knowledge.
Explicit knowledge, is the knowledge that we can convey in letters, words and numbers.
Tacit knowledge is individualized and highly personal or private including your values or emotions.

8. Foundation of Knowledge Model
Three types of knowledge workers
The blending of knowledge workers
Who are knowledge consumers?
Who are knowledge brokers?
There are three types of knowledge workers, knowledge consumers, knowledge brokers and knowledge generators.
This breakdown of knowledge workers is not mutually exclusive but instead we transition between them as situations and our experience, education, and knowledge change.
Knowledge consumers are mainly users of knowledge who do not have the expertise to provide the knowledge they need for themselves.
Knowledge brokers know where to find information and knowledge, they generate some knowledge but are mainly known for their ability to find what is needed.

9. Foundation of Knowledge Model
Who are knowledge generators?
What nurses are in the “know”?
Who benefits from a nurse’s growing knowledge?
How do we enhance the process?
Knowledge generators are the “primary sources of new knowledge”.
These are our nursing researchers and nursing experts, the people who “know”. They are able to answer our questions, craft theories, find solutions to nursing problems or concerns and innovate practice.
The healthcare industry, the nursing profession and our patients all benefit as we develop nursing intelligence and intellectual capital by gaining insight into nursing science and, its enactment, practice.
In order to be able to enhance the acquisition, processing, generation, dissemination and reuse of nursing knowledge, we must codify or be able to articulate our knowledge structures so that they can be captured within the knowledge management systems (KMS).

10. Foundation of Knowledge Model
Is knowledge power?
Are nurses knowledge workers?
What is nursing science dependent on?
How can nursing informatics be used?
The Foundation of Knowledge Model © 2007 reflects that knowledge is power and for that reason, nurses focus on information as a key resource.
Nurses are knowledge workers, working with information and generating information and knowledge as a product. We are knowledge acquirers, providing convenient and efficient means of capturing and storing knowledge.
Nursing science is dependent on knowledge generation and nursing informatics should facilitate all aspects of nursing.
Nursing informatics can also be used to facilitate nursing administration and managerial studies of the work of nursing.

11. Foundation of Knowledge Model
What we MUST do with knowledge
As knowledge develops more information will become available
The never ending challenge that nurses aspire for
Knowledge must be dynamically generated, disseminated and assimilated.
This dynamic interplay means that as knowledge is generated, disseminated and assimilated, new questions about the impact of NI will arise that will help new knowledge to be generated and assimilated and so on.
As nurses, we challenge what is known and want to acquire, process, generate and disseminate knowledge