The multimethod evaluation of a nursing information system in Taiwan

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of a nursing information system on nurses' daily practice. A multimethod evaluation was used that combined both quantitative and qualitative approaches to explore the influence of this technology from different perspectives. The data collection methods included the following: an evaluation scale of the system function, focus group interviews about the users' experiences, and work sampling observation of their work pattern. The data were collected from October to December 2006. The data analysis contained 623 valid questionnaires, 24 nurses' interview content, and 22830 observed nursing activities. Overall, the results indicated that nurses gave a positive evaluation of the technology in their work routine. However, they were concerned about the inadequacy of the hardware devices and response time, training and workflow change, and personal interactions with physicians and patients. Nurses on the night shift spent more time on documentation than on any other nursing activities during the three shifts. The users' technology adoption could be attributed to device sufficiency and function, content design, and workflow efficiency. It is recommended that organizations provide sufficient computer devices, ensure the content design for nursing documentation, and implement expectations for interdisciplinary cooperation.