Career Opportunities in Nursing Informatics

Abstract

The opportunity to contribute to the enhancement of nursing care through preparing for a career in nursing informatics is a wonderful challenge. A professional nurse, who has earned a minimum of a baccalaureate degree or its equivalent, and who wishes to prepare for a career in nursing informatics usually asks the question, “How do I prepare beyond my nursing background for the informatics aspects of nursing informatics.” Because organized nursing in each country has different goals for advanced preparation, it is difficult to make generalized statements. In the United States and Canada, for example, advanced preparation in nursing informatics would mean enrolling in a master’s or doctoral academic degree program. In other countries the mechanism for advanced preparation is through certification procedures. However, regardless of one’s respective country model, the demands placed upon an expert in nursing informatics suggest that the preparation required for nursing informatics goes significantly beyond the basic professional nursing degree.