Computer-based data entry for nurses in the ICU.

Efforts are being made to improve the efficiency and quality of care in intensive care units (ICUs) at Latter Day Saints Hospital. The ICUs have been computerized, and the collection, storage, and presentation of patients' data have been improved. Nurses use computers for entering clinical data and plans for nursing care, and the effects of these changes on the work patterns of nurses in the ICU have been evaluated. Contrary to our expectation, our studies showed a decrease in the proportion of time that nurses spent in direct patient care (from 49.1% to 43.2%) and an increase in the proportion they spent entering clinical data (from 18.2% to 24.2%) after computerization. These changes, however, were attributed to a decrease in the severity of patients' illnesses, rather than the availability of the computer. There was no measurable difference in the proportion of time spent at other nursing activities.