Nursing informatics face many challenges while in its infancy stage. A community-centered approach to the use of information, communication and technology in nursing practice must be adapted to ensure the impact of the program in the local health care system. Lack of certification and credentialing programs in post-graduate levels are also absent with the scarcity of local nursing informatics experts. This new field has yet to gain acceptance and recognition in the nursing community as a sub-specialty.
Some nurses in the Philippines are computer illiterate, which means that they're not used to or fond of using computers, therefore they would rather choose to use the old traditional method of documentation.
Another challenge is, there are two generations of people. The young ones are people that think differently. They've come through the educational system just recently where everything is automated. And, the old ones are the ones that are being pushed by the young ones out of their practice saying, ‘Why are you writing that on a piece of paper like that? Why are you recording your nursing assessment on the leg of your scrubs?’ which is a very common thing for nurses to do, or ‘on your hand, or on a paper towel and stick it in your pocket?’
So the younger generation, who were the ones that were recently educated, are pushing the old folks out of their practice.
Many nurses struggle in practice as they continue to try and apply habitual communication practices in the new environment without any critical reflection on, and adaptation of, those practices.
There are no medical establishments that can cater students' needs to be exposed to any application on this technology in any medical field. So our government must support the use of health information standards in the Philippines, and to have nursing informatics specialists in every hospital in the country.
