Application: Adoption of New Technology Systems - Research Paper Example

Adoption of New Technology Systems According to Rogers (2003), there are five qualities that influence how individuals view an adaptation of a new technology such as the planned implementation of a new electronic health records system. These qualities are; relative advantage, compatibility, simplicity, trial ability and observable results. As a nurse facilitator, I will need to relate these qualities to the incoming electronic health records system in order to align the attitudes of nurses towards the successful implementation of the system.

In the meeting between me and the nurses, I will need to psychologically prepare he nurses for approaching training and implementation process on the new system. To begin with, I will create a theme for my meeting with my fellow nurses. The main purpose of the theme is to create a warm atmosphere in the meeting. This will be the theme of my meeting: “Nursing just got Easier!” This theme will make the nurses perceive the new technology as easier. This addresses the simplicity of the new system identified by Rogers (2003) to be an important determinant of an individual’s attitude towards the new adoption of the records system.

The theme of my meeting will be communicated to the nurses via text messages and will be written in front of the meeting and training venues. Before the onset of the meeting between me and the nurses, I will research on the relative advantages of the new records system as opposed to the outgoing technology. I will form a table which summarizes the pros and cons of the new system vis-a-vis the outgoing system. I will be cautious not to water down the advantages by the disadvantages. On the day of the meeting, I will give each nurse a copy to this table before we go through the advantages together.

I will touch on the disadvantages on the new system as I give recommendation on how these disadvantages can be overcome. This will make the nurses see the relative advantages on the new systems as argued by Rogers (2003). To address compatibility of the new system, I will advise the nurses on the ways in which they can incorporate the new system with their existing practices as advised by Rogers (2003) in his theory of diffusion of innovations. This can be done interactively by allowing nurses to brainstorm before giving their opinions.

I will second their opinions and improve on their weak ones. Nurses reluctant to using this new system will be encouraged by viewing how their fellow nurses are excited about using this new system. Nurses need to ‘play around’ with the new electronic health records system in order to familiarize themselves with its operations and capabilities (Rogers, 2003). During the meeting, I will organize for a number of the computers on which the nurses will try to familiarize themselves with the system.

I will ask the nurses to organize themselves in groups of around four nurses per computer. I will give nurses at least forty five minutes to play around with the system as they help each other on any difficulties of using the system. I will remain at the meeting venue to provide assistance where fellow nurses fail to be of help. During this meeting, the nurses will not be able to satisfactorily understand the usage and tricks of the new system. There is need for the hospital to organize a dedicated room where nurses can be practicing to gain practical skills in using the system (Gruber et. al., 2010).

This will be important so that nurses can gain enough technical knowledge of the system for successful implementation of the technology. Accessibility to the training room should be made as flexible as possible to take advantage of nurses who are to learn about the system while not on shift. To conclude my meeting, I will mention to the nurses some of the hospitals which have successfully incorporated the new system in their operations. This will build confidence in the nurses especially if I point out benefits which other nurses form other hospitals have accrued.

I will briefly organize a question and answer session after the meeting. I will then encourage nurses to prepare more questions and concerns which will be addressed when the training session begins. Nurses are vital change agents in the any process of adoption of a new technology in a health facility. According to the recommendations of Cresswell & Sheikh (2009), “Acknowledging the inherent difficulties and complexities on the part of all stakeholders will be crucial in shifting the focus from blame to teamwork.

” Due to the nature of activities and services offered by nurses, they are arguably the most important stakeholders in facilitating implementation of new technologies in a health facility. Nurses offer a good link between patients and doctors and they can thus be able to rate progress or challenges of a new technology whose objective is to offer efficient health services to patients. There are five implementation elements which nurses and their heads need to consider for successful adoption of new technologies (Gruber et. al., 2010).

These include; establishment of a strong implementation team, training of stakeholders (nurses and other staff) for change, formation of an exclusive classroom for training, frequent communication and persistent implementation. Nurses need to be empowered for successful implementation of any change process aimed towards adoption of new technologies. This is crucial in ensuring that progress is tracked while noting success and addressing failures. There is need for a guiding coalition in which nurses should be well represented due to their importance as stakeholders in technological change management.

Nurses should align their activities to suit the visions and goals of change for successful adoption of any new technology (Fickenscher & Bakerman, 2011). The support of nurses in change management is of importance if any success is to be expected. References Cresswell, K., & Sheikh, A. (2009). The NHS Care Record Service: Recommendations from the literature on successful implementation and adoption. Informatics in Primary Care, 17(3), 153–160.  Fickenscher, K., & Bakerman, M. (2011). Change management in health care IT.

 Physician Executive, 37(2), 64–67.  Gruber, N., Darragh, J., Puccia, P. H., Kadric, D. S., & Bruce, S. (2010). Embracing change to improve performance. Long-Term Living: For the Continuing Care Professional, 59(1), 28–31. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.  Rogers, E. M. (1995). Diffusion of innovations. (5th ed.). New York, NY: A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc