The difference between health care and nursing informatics

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Technology and data are used in the health care industry to drive change that may lead to more efficient care delivery, improved patient care, lower costs, and better health outcomes.

Broadly, the field of informatics in health care is the study, design, and application of information technology to improve human health.

Health care informatics is a broad term inclusive of many roles and aspects of using data to improve health care, while nursing informatics tends to focus on patient care. Capella University offers numerous informatics programs in nursing and health care. Here, faculty members Allison Terry, PhD, and Lydia Forsythe, PhD, share a guide to help you better understand the differences in the fields, as well as career paths to explore for each.

Explore Capella’s bachelor’s, master’s, and certificate programs in health information management, health care informatics, and nursing informatics:

Health Care Informatics

Numerous roles within health care, emphasizing compliance with regulations and improving hospital finances.

Nursing Informatics

Patient focused, emphasizing improvement in patient care.

Health Care Informatics

Chief clinical informatics officer
Director of clinical informatics
Project manager
Clinical manager
Program director
Business analyst
Data analyst

Nursing Informatics

Nursing informatics specialist
Director of clinical informatics
Clinical analyst
Consultant
Clinical informatics specialist
Chief nursing informatics officer

Health Care Informatics

Work at the intersection of computer science, information technology, and health care administration.
Implement electronic health records and understand how they impact organizational, operational, and staffing needs.
Manage, interpret, and communicate data to improve patient outcomes.
Ensure compliance of data and meaningful use initiatives.
Coordinate hardware, software, regulatory requirements, and infrastructure of a hospital or health system.
Work with staff education to design training programs for staff when implementing a new electronic health records system.
Integrate ICD-10 into systems.

Nursing Informatics

Work at the intersection of computer science, information technology, and nursing.
Assess hospital and patient needs as well as business and IT needs.
Develop efficient clinical workflow to assess gaps in health care delivery system and create ways to address them.
Manage, interpret, and communicate data to improve clinical practice.
Verify that electronic health records capture information at the point of care accurately and in a standardized format.
Support continuity and quality of care across caregivers.
Integrate ICD-10 into systems.
Assist in staff training programs on electronic health record systems.

Explore Capella’s bachelor’s, master’s, and certificate programs in health information management, health care informatics, and nursing informatics: