Posted: 1/2/2002
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) have designated the Institute for Johns Hopkins Nursing as a Collaborating Center for Information Systems in Nursing Care.
The Institute for Johns Hopkins Nursing is a joint venture of The Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing and The Johns Hopkins Hospital Department of Nursing and aims to promote collaboration between clinicians at the hospital and educators and researchers at the School of Nursing.
The Institute for Johns Hopkins Nursing is the first WHO/PAHO Collaborating Center concentrating specifically on clinical nursing informatics. As a Collaborating Center, the institute will engage in national and international activities that respond to informatics needs and trends in the field of clinical nursing. The center will be co-directed by the dean of The Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing and the vice president for nursing and patient care services of The Johns Hopkins Hospital.
“By incorporating into nursing practice the technologies available to us, we will transform the way health professionals and particularly nurses, practice their profession in the years to come,” says Marion Ball, EdD, adjunct professor at the School of Nursing. “Being designated as a Collaborating Center allows us to promote nursing and health care informatics and offers us a way to invite the international community to share in our knowledge and enhance the nursing profession to its fullest extent.”
According to Martha Hill, PhD, RN, interim dean of The Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing, informatics is important in an academic setting as well as a clinical setting. “At Johns Hopkins, we strive to be on the leading edge of providing our students with the tools they need, such as a strong foundation in nursing informatics, so they can practice high quality patient care,” she says. “At every level of our curriculum – baccalaureate, graduate, and doctoral – we offer informatics technology into the courses. We are proud that the Institute for Johns Hopkins Nursing was named a WHO/PAHO Collaborating Center. It underscores the important role nurses play as our world becomes increasingly dependent on technology and information systems.”