Using and Managing Information for Better Health Care: (PDQ care series)

The fourth title in the PDQ Care series of open learning packs for nurses, midwives and health visitors. Nurses at all levels are becoming increasingly aware of their responsibilities with regard to managing patient information. They also realise that the efficient management of information can increase the efficiency and quality of the care patients receive. Provision of quality health care to all clients, both in hospital and in the community has become one of the major issues in modern professional nursing practice and anything which contributes towards achieving quality care is of great relevance to nurses. This pack aims to help the user by: Y increasing awareness of information as an individual and organisational resource Y helping the reader to define his/her own information needs and to assess the quality of the information currently received and communicated Y teaching the user how to extract information from available data as a basis for efficient decision making and action planning Y showing how a model of information management may be used to diagnose problems and ultimately improve nursing care Y providing information on legislation and good practice relevant to the management of information by all nurses Y creating an understanding of how good information management can promote effective provision of health care throughout the organisation responsible for its provision Like other titles in PDQ Care, the pack content has been critically reviewed by a panel of readers and field tested by potential users.

Table of Contents:
Workbook (Presented in Looseleaf Form) LEARNING PROFILE: SECTION 1 INFORMATION in HEALTH CARE: Information and Uncertainty. Information as a Resource that Needs Managing. The Role of Information Technology in Health Care. Information as a Social Force. SECTION 2 the INFORMATION LIFE CYCLE: A Closer Look at Information Management. The Information Life Cycle. SECTION 3 the PRACTICE of INFORMATION MANAGEMENT: Information Packages and Flows. The Four Dimensions of Information Management. SECTION 4 INFORMATION NEEDS, SOURCES and CHANNELS: Identifying Your Information Needs. Assessing the Information You Gather or Receive. Your Sources and Channels of Information. SECTION 5 from DATA to DECISIONS: Information and People. Decision Making. SECTION 6 INTRODUCTION to INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: Computers and Their Applications. Present and Future Trends. Likely Issues and Difficulties. SECTION 7 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY in HEALTH CARE: Information Technology in the Service of Health Care. Information Technology in Community Care. Information Technology in Hospitals. The Integrated Clinical Workstation. Information Technology in Health Care: Issues and Difficulties. SECTION 8 MISUSE of INFORMATION and OTHER ISSUES: Confidentiality. Security. Health and Safety. SECTION 9 BETTER INFORMATION for BETTER HEALTH CARE: Information, Information Technology and the Future. Developing Your Personal Information Strategy. LEARNING REVIEW. A4 Reader: Contains Supportive Reading to Which the Reader Is Directed as They Progress Through the Workbook. The Reader Is Contained in a Pocket at the Front of the Ringbinder and Is Also Punched with Holes for Insertion Into the Binder, If Required. The Information Management and Technology Strategy for the NHS in England: an Updated Overview. Information Systems for Nurses, Midwives, And Health Visitors. A Strategic Statement. Born to Be Wired. Doing the Off-Duty By Computer Spreadsheet. Human Values as the Core Foc Us of Community Health Computing. Maternity Services: Chapter 5 from Life and Work i