Adoption of New Technology Systems and Proper Nursing Leadership
Assignment: Application: Adoption of New Technology Systems
As a nurse, you can have a great impact on the success or failure of the adoption of EHRs. It is important for nurses to understand their role as change agents and the ways they can influence others when addressing the challenges of changing to a drastically different way of doing things.
Everett Rogers, a pioneer in the field of the diffusion of innovations, identified five qualities that determine individual attitudes towards adopting new technology (2003). He theorized that individuals are concerned with:
• Relative advantage: The individual adopting the new innovation must see how it will be an improvement over the old way of doing things.
• Compatibility with existing values and practices: The adopter must understand how the new innovation aligns with current practices.
• Simplicity: The adopter must believe he or she can easily master the new technology; the more difficult learning the new system appears, the greater the resistance that will occur.
• Trialability: The adopter should have the opportunity to “play around’ with the new technology and explore its capabilities.
• Observable results: The adopter must have evidence that the proposed innovation has been successful in other situations.
For this Assignment, you assume the role of a nurse facilitator in a small hospital in upstate New York. You have been part of a team preparing for the implementation of a new electronic health records system. Decisions as to the program that will be used have been finalized, and you are now tasked with preparing the nurses for the new system. There has been an undercurrent of resistance expressed by nurses, and you must respond to their concerns. You have a meeting scheduled with the nurses 1 week prior to the training on the new EHR system. Consider how you can use the five qualities outlined by Rogers (2003) to assist in preparing the nurses for the upcoming implementation.
To prepare
• Review the Learning Resources this week about successful implementations of EHRs.
• Consider how you would present the new EHR system to the nurses to win their approval.
• Reflect on the five qualities outlined by Rogers. How would addressing each of those areas improve the likelihood of success?
Write a 3- to 5-page paper which includes the following:
• Using Rogers’ (2003) theory as a foundation, outline how you would approach the meeting with the nurses. Be specific as to the types of information or activities you could provide to address each area and include how you would respond to resistance.
• Analyze the role of nurses as change agents in facilitating the adoption of new technology.
Adoption of New Technology Systems
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Adoption of New Technology Systems
User attitude is critical in the implementation of any change in an organization. It will be essential to engage the nurses from the beginning of the implementation process because of familiarity and may enhance their attitude towards the plan. Having a clear understanding of how the nurses perceive the new technology, including any form of the misconception that may help in addressing any concern (Lee, 2004). Providing prior information on the impending changes may improve the nurses to embrace the technology, but if they are not informed, then they may resist the change. Receiving the new electronic health record, therefore, requires cooperation between the nurses and the other stakeholders involved and providing sufficient information regarding the significance of the EHR.
In trying to understand the theory of diffusion of innovation, there is a need to communicate clearly to the target group regarding the impending changes to make them accept it and reduce resistance (Rodgers, 2003). Nurses are the target group because of the critical role they play in the documentation process as well as their interaction with the EHR. Nurses should, therefore, be informed about the new system and how they tend to benefit from it instead of letting them decide whether to support it or not (de Veer et al., 2011). The hospital should highlight all the benefits that the nurses can derive from the new technology and address all their fears (Lee, 2004). The facilitator should also be able to explain to the nurses on how the new project will benefit the organization to prepare the nurses psychologically. Psychological preparation may help in accepting the impending change, thus leading to the smooth implementation process.
In the healthcare sector, innovation is vital in ensuring quality, delivery and therefore, the management should be able to embrace the benefits derived from new technology (Rodgers, 2003). Introducing creativity and implementing change in the health care sector is quite crucial in enhancing the quality delivery of services. The nurse leaders should, therefore, be able to influence their juniors to accept change and ensure that they create an environment that is receptive to change. The nurses should be able to take ownership of the new EHR for it to succeed and understand that the success of the impending change is likely to impact their work positively (Lee, 2004). The nurses should know that the new EHR is not meant to interfere with their daily activities. Instead, it is intended to improve service delivery and make their work e...