2002 Volume 22 Issue 6 Pages 483-490
Since the use of information technology (IT) and evidence-based planning and performance have become national policy in healthcare and welfare, professionals in these fields are in need of appropriate IT skills. However, there have been no surveys to investigate the type and level of IT skills necessary for community nursing. Firstly, we surveyed directors of community health centers in areas where local governments were actively introducing IT, for awareness of this need. Since new community nurses tend to receive their training in colleges and universities, we also surveyed the opinions of teachers of community nursing science and nursing informatics or information science in colleges and universities, regarding the provision in college and university courses of opportunities for acquiring the various IT skills. The survey of health center directors and college and university staff revealed that computer literacy and basic information literacy were strongly endorsed as required skills for community nurses, and the acquisition of these skills was regarded as a necessary component of undergraduate education. Although the need for education in the understanding, management and operation of information systems, and in statistical methods for planning and evaluation of projects, was also acknowledged by health center directors, the necessity for including teaching of those skills in undergraduate and graduate courses was weakly recognized by college and university staff. Community nurses have little opportunity to acquire these capabilities, even in training after graduation. The present findings indicate that steps should be taken to ensure that opportunities are provided for community nurses to acquire practical skills in IT use, as an essential element in the promotion of active use of IT in community healthcare.
