Investigating the Information Technology Competency of Nurses in Critical Care Units: A cross-sectional study

Introduction: With the rapid growth of information technology (IT) and the expectations of health care environments, the presence of nurses with informatics skills in the health care environment to effectively use and manage health care information in health care delivery seems necessary; therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the IT competency of special care nurses from their point of view. Method: This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the IT competency of nurses in the special care departments of Afzalipur Hospital of Kerman University of Medical Sciences in 1400 SH. The study population included 60 nurses working in the intensive care units (ICU and CCU) who were included in the study using a census method. The Nursing Informatics Competency Assessment Tool (NICAT) was used in this research. Results: The findings of the study showed that the average score of IT qualification of nurses in the special care department (2.70 ± 0.85) is within the range of “competent”. The data showed that the highest score of IT competency of the studied nurses was attributed to the computer literacy section (2.82±0.93), and the lowest score was related to the information management skills section (2.58±0.85). Conclusion: It is suggested that clinical nursing managers improve the IT competency of nurses by implementing educational programs in the field of “IT literacy in the hospital”, especially in the division of information management skills which had the lowest average score, so that they can use the latest evidence to provide more effective care at the bedside.