Purpose: Comment the Discussion

THINGS TO REMEMBER:

• Answer this discussion with opinions/ideas creatively and clearly. Supports post using several outside, peer-reviewed sources.

• 1 References, find resources that are 5 years or less

• No errors with APA format 6 Edition

Discussion :

Data management is the development of policies, practices, and procedures in order to manage and maintain the needs of a corporation. In order for one's business to be successful, they must target the appropriate population. A hospital should make policies that are pertinent for their patients, and continue to alter them as needed.

As the times change, so does the way information and data is collected and stored. Technology and healthcare policies are ever changing and should be updated within a practice.

I feel skilled in the specific care I provide to my patients on a postpartum unit. Working on a specialized unit, I have obtained pertinent skills and recognize the need when new policies and procedures should be designed and implemented. It is important to document everything that is assessed with a patient and all communication that occurs between a nurse and a physician concerning a patient's care (Read, Zametkin, Fred, Tolea, Galvin &Surkis, 2017). We have all heard the saying, "If it's not charted, then it wasn't done."

Personal improvement can be accomplished through better data collection. We, as healthcare providers, do have access to other data sources and information, however most of the time we are too busy to take the time to look up additional information. Usually, we seek out our peers for advice on best practices in certain situations.

Nurses with more experience have different perspectives than newer nurses since policies and technology have evolved throughout the years. Just like there will be differences between each hospital's policies and each nurse's training and education on a specific topic.

In order to help improve my use of other data sources, I could subscribe to journals. Journals specific to one's line of work is beneficial in staying up-to-date on evidence based practice and also learning about pros and cons concerning different policies and procedures. Attending conferences and classes in order to stay current on the best practices is also recommended.

Obtaining continued education credits will encourage employees to seek out opportunities to learn more about current evidence based practices.

Also, research committees within a hospital are a great way to increase knowledge about the need of implementing new practices. I am currently a member of a safety committee at work and we are researching ways to help improve patient safety and procedure outcomes. A patient advocate who is also aware of safe practices will strengthen one's data management skills.

Reference

Read, K., Zametkin, L., Fred, W., Tolea, M., Galvin, J., &Surkis, A. (2017).

Improving data collection, documentation, and workflow in a dementia screening study. Journal of the Medical Library Association, 105(2): 160-166.