Document Type
Poster
Publication Date
2021
Abstract
Background: Advancing technology requires healthcare institutions to continually update and modernize electronic medical records to remain viable. A refinement of these digital systems allows for increased efficiency and standardization organization wide, leveraging technology to enhance daily workload. Without systemwide acceptance from end users, adoption of new digital practices will stall in inception. Pilot programs are designed to inform leadership of participants overarching reactions toward the new product. An evaluation analyzes end user responses to determine feasibility. Currently, a large midwestern pediatric hospital is conducting a pilot program to introduce an enhanced workload scoring system that determines nurse assignments; however a tool does not exist to evaluate the effectiveness and guidance of the pilot. The purpose of this project was to develop a tool to evaluate the workload scoring (WLS) and nurse assignment wizard (NAW) pilot program, data produced will be used to recommend changes required for usability, acceptance, and adoption from end users.
Method: An evaluation tool was created in part from project objectives, literature reviews of similar work and then tailored to the existing pilot program. The tool is a questionnaire comprised of formative and summative evaluation models designed to expose areas of misconception and learning gaps. The questionnaire will be sent to all participants in the pilot program, nurse managers and charge nurses. Analysis of end user behaviors during the pilot coupled with the questionnaire will highlight areas for modification during the pilot program.
Results: A flexible evaluative tool was created from evidenced based strategies provided from the literature review and presented to the informatics department. Strategies included formative and summative assessments of user reactions, combined with three evaluation models for measuring concrete and abstract data.
Conclusions: The evaluation process allows for healthcare organizations to better understand adaptations required to achieve success in priority activities while identifying areas for improvement to aide implementation (Sibbald, Gibson, Singer, Upshur & Martin, 2010). This requires further investigation of best practice models for evaluation of simulation pilot programs.
