Second-Generation HIT Informaticists

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Great discoveries can transform the world. In 400 BC, Hippocrates theorized that the body was composed of four “humors”—blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile. Now think of the impact of the seminal work of William Harvey, who, in the 1600s, accurately described the circulation system and the role of the heart for the first time. It was not until the early 1900s that the Austrian biologist Karl Landsteiner identified four distinct blood groups. Today, knowledge about the nature and properties of blood is so complicated that the entire field of blood chemistry is devoted to its study.

This same type of expansion of knowledge within a scientific field is mirrored within the field of informatics. As new technologies develop, subsequent changes occur in the fiel that are, built upon the earlier work of others. In this Discussion, you examine the continuing evolution of the field of health informatics and assess how researchers built on the work of preceding scientists.

You will focus on the following individuals:

  • Joan Ash
  • Nancy Lorenzi
  • Ben Shneiderman
  • Diane Forsythe
  • Chuck Friedman
  • Sue Bakken
  • Patty Brennan
  • Diane Skiba
  • Danny Sands
  • Lucian Leape

To prepare:

  • Select and read at least one article from this week’s Learning Resources for at least five individuals listed above.
  • Consider how the work of each individual has built upon the work of earlier pioneers in the informatics field.
  • Assess the areas of growth in informatics research from the informatics pioneers you researched last week to the individuals you read about this week, and the ways in which health informatics has continued to evolve.
  • Select one individual from this week you found to be of particular interest, and read at least one additional article written by him or her from the list provided in the Learning Resources.
  • Conduct further research to determine recent contributions or additions to the individual’s research.

By Tomorrow 12/06/16, post a minimum of 550 words in APA format with a minimum of three references from the list provided below. Include the level one headings as numbered below:

1)      A brief summary of key contributions of the individual you selected.

2)      Explain which ideas/accomplishments you found to be most compelling, and why.

3)      Assess the evolution of the field of nursing informatics from the first group of pioneers (Week 1 Discussion) to the second generation of HIT nurse informaticists.

4)      Provide specific examples of how this evolution is evident in the field.