Background: Nursing activity should be evaluated from the viewpoint of the balance of “patient’s demand” and “nursing supply.” In this study, the relationship between nursing care time and the patient’s condition was investigated by Multilevel analysis.

 Method: The patient’s condition is thought to reflect the “patient’s demand” and is classified into two groups, “human needs originated patient’s condition (HNOPC)” and “medical treatment originated patient’s condition (MTOPC).” Time-motion study data of nursing care were used as “nursing supply,” from an investigation conducted for 15 days in an acute-care and surgical ward of a university hospital in July 1999 and August 2000. At the same time, inpatient’s information on HNOPC and MTOPC were collected for all of the evaluated patients in the ward. Multilevel analysis was applied to examine which group of patient’s conditions would have more effect on patient’s care time. Furthermore, the number of “postoperative days” was employed as the predictor variable because it was an important factor that effected “patient’s demand” and “nursing supply” in the surgical ward. The model selection was done by Akaike’s Information Criteria (AIC).

 Results and Discussions: The MTOPC group showed a stronger influence on patient’s care time than the HNOPC group. The most effective items were [impaired verbal communication] in HNOPC and [move-in] in MTOPC. The effect of “postoperative days” on the patient’s care time was not so large. The statistically significant coefficients of each model showed good agreement with clinical knowledge.

 QWERTY type keyboard and mouse are used as information input interface in most of nursing information system. However, operation of the keyboard is not easy for beginner of computer environment like a nurse. Appearance of human error in patient environment is considered, since characteristics of the user and specification of the machine are not matched. In this study, mobile phone type input interface is proposed as information input interface for the nurse. Performance of mobile phone type input interface is estimated by typing experiment. In the result, the interface indicates better performance for nursing information system.

 Pregnogram is used for better understanding of pregnancy in which medical records of pregnant women are expressed by tables or graphs.

 We refined our pregnogram along with computerization of medical records in our hospital. Automatic conversion of numerical data to graphs, display of sample examination order status and display of the results of urine examinations were enabled. This system makes it possible that midwives can consult patients observing her pregnogram together. In other words, midwives and patients can own information jointly and patients can recognize their condition by themselves.

 Health care points for pregnant women are imaged automatically on the display with each gestational week. The contents of the care are displayed in the pregnogram. This system made continuous and programed health care for pregnant women sufficient and easy.

 An internet web site which concerns delivery and parenting is operating by the professional midwives. We are able to consider healthy pregnant life and ideal parenting regionally, and to support pregnant or parenting women and their relatives on this site. It used to be accessible this kind of information from the school or clinical seminars for expecting mothers by municipals. It is desired for them to get proper information or advisory due to the shift of work-style of women. This site will also help the mothers’ or expectants’ companionship that follows good relationship to get information effective to avoid anxiety during the pregnant and parenting term. It is emphasized that the web-based information system is effective in the communication of pregnant or parenting women.

 Nursing informatics education is now offered at many educational institutions as part of the growing trend toward higher academic credentials for nursing, which includes the establishment of colleges and graduate schools of nursing. The information-centered nursing environment is being rapidly transformed by such factors as the development of information technology and the disclosure of medical records. To meet the challenges of this rapid transformation, the educational institutions that train nursing instructors must offer continuing education after graduation. This research is based on surveys of nursing instructors now employed at hospitals into the current state of nursing informatics education, including the informatics education they received and the continuing education at their worksites. The results show that few nursing instructors have received informatics-related instruction at educational institutions training nursing instructors, or have studied nursing informatics education through continuing education. In addition, many nursing instructors recognize the necessity for nursing informatics education studies to be offered through continuing education courses in the future. We think it is necessary to establish and develop methods for the educational content of a course in nursing informatics as a specialty in the field of nursing.