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It has become apparent that new nurses through undergraduate and graduate education are getting exposure to newer technology. How will senior nurses, who have not had that exposure through education get the same training? The TIGER Informatics Competencies Team recommends that we adopt and promote the European Computer Drivers License as the training model in becoming competent in nursing informatics. This model has a well developed training program, work book, and testing process that has proven to be able to accomplish the educational task throughout the years. Washington Hospital Center has not focused on the TIGER initiatives in that the two group members, who are employees there have never encountered TIGER initiatives during their employment. Nurses with VA licenses will need to get contact credits starting August 2015 to renew their licenses and this may be the ideal opportunity in getting the competencies met for all nurses (VA Board of Nursing, 2013). The TIGER team offered its own recommendation in terms of getting the informatic competencies met and if we can find a way to couple that with a requirement such as licensing, it would ensure that all nurses become competent.
McGonigle and Mastrian (2012) outline informatics competencies that Staggers, Gassert, and Curran created with the intent to prepare nurses for the technological advances that are currently in the nursing practice as well as for the future. The four categories are the beginning nurse, experienced nurse, informatics nurse specialist, and informatics innovator. Each level has criteria that outline the minimum competencies. The Technology Informatics Guiding Education Reform (TIGER) is an organization that is part of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems, created with the vision to ”better preparing the clinical workforce to use technology and informatics to improve the delivery of patient care” (TIGER, 2011). The organization works to provide education and training in informatics. The TIGER initiatives are designed to prepare nurses and clinicians to use technology and informatics to improve patient care. The main goal is to start the development of a nationwide health technology infrastructure and incorporate the standards that are focused in patient centered technology that will make healthcare delivery safer and more efficient. The Delphi study was created by Staggers, Gassert, and Curran to identify the appropriate criteria for nurses to utilize informatics from a beginning level to an informatics visionary.