Overcoming barriers to automation.

The healthcare environment today is saturated with documentation requirements. The magnitude of nursing time dedicated to this paperwork is substantial. Many chiefs of nursing service have considered computerized patient care information systems in an effort to maximize nursing resources and improve patient care. To this end, the Secretary's Commission on Nursing (1988) cited the use of computer technology as one of the three best paths to easing the country's nursing shortage. The author focuses on the problems in nurses' daily work and the role automation plays in facilitating the process of care delivery and explains factors acting as barriers to automation.