A CIS (clinical information system) quality evaluation tool for nursing care services

The purpose of this study was to develop a tool to evaluate the quality of a clinical information system (CIS) conceived by nurses and conduct a pilot test with the developed tool as an initial assessment. CIS quality is required for successful implementation in information technology (IT) environments. The study started with the realization that CIS quality measures have influenced nursing care activities, but have not been organized in a systematic manner. Thus, there have been failures to respond to nurses' demand for a quality CIS that upholds nursing care.;Measures to capture CIS quality were identified through a literature review. A multi- method tool was developed to evaluate quality measures, incorporating a questionnaire, interview, and observation. Data were collected from a convenient sample of twenty nurses who use a CIS with patient care at a large hospital in the U.S. The scale-level content validity index (S-CVI) and internal consistency reliability were used for questionnaire assessment, and cross tabulation analysis was used to identify relationships between participants' characteristics and questionnaire items. Transcribed qualitative data were categorized according to definitions of the CIS quality measures. Results from the three methods were analyzed and incorporated by the five criteria for evaluation of a multi-method study design.;Questionnaire assessment presented an acceptable level of content validity (S-CVI = .97) and internal consistency reliability (Cronbach's alpha of total item reliability = .779). In comparison to each of the quality measures, interview responses and observational findings were congruent with, complementary to, and/or inconsistent with the perceptions of the 22-item questionnaire.;The author has concluded that the multi-method tool of this study captured nurses' perception of (and demands for) CIS quality. This study identified usefulness of a multi-method approach in evaluating CIS quality for nursing care. The quality measures and dimensions identified in this study serve as a fundamental qualification for evaluation of CIS quality.