Empowered Clinical Support: The Importance of a Knowledge Path to Successful Technology Use.

Blog contribution by Melanie Viquez, FACHE, PMP, EDAC, MT(ASCP), Senior Project Manager @ Yellow Brick Consulting

Too often, when hospitals adopt new health IT systems, the conversation focuses on capabilities and return on investment — without asking the most important question: How will this technology actually work for the people delivering care? Nurses, who are the primary end users of these systems, must be armed with knowledge of what questions to ask at every stage of the project. Doing so transforms them from passive users into empowered partners who ensure technology aligns with patient care and organizational goals.

When we think about hospital technology, we talk about systems, timelines, and go-live dates. But the real question is: when do we bring nurses into the conversation?

Too often, nurses are asked to adapt to systems that were already chosen, configured, and installed. By then, their insights can only fix symptoms — not root causes. The result? Tools that could have been transformational end up being underused, misunderstood, or worse — disruptive.

It doesn’t have to be that way.

Why Timing Matters

Research consistently shows that when nurses are engaged late in the process, hospitals lose both time and value.

A study done in Australia examining nurses’ postimplementation experiences of an organization-wide EMR system. (Rebecca M Jedwab, Elizabeth Manias, Alison M Hutchinson, Naomi Dobroff, Bernice Redley. Originally published in JMIR Nursing (https://nursing.jmir.org), 26.07.2022) found that nurses were still adapting to a new electronic medical record 18 months after go-live, largely because they weren’t included in early design and workflow mapping.

Similarly, research on barcode medication administration (BCMA) revealed that when the system wasn’t aligned with nursing workflow, nurses developed workarounds that “can, if poorly implemented, cause disrupted workflow, increased workload, and even medication errors.” (Westbrook et al., BMJ Quality & Safety)

Another study published in BMC Medical Informatics & Decision Making (2018) examined the introduction of a Real-Time Location System (RTLS) for asset tracking in a hospital and included 117 nurses in evaluation after three months of use. The study found that nurses valued the potential of RTLS to improve efficiency, but satisfaction was moderate (2.7–3.4 out of 5) due to technical and usability issues. This case underscores the need for nurse engagement before and during technology rollout which surfaced practical questions about tag design, alert management, integration into workflows, and privacy concerns before costly implementation steps are taken.

The Roadmap for Nurse-Centered Technology Planning

Engaging nurses strategically — not just during training — ensures that technology investments truly support patient care and organizational goals.

Here’s what a nurse-centered roadmap looks like:

  1. Pre-Planning / Discovery
    Bring nurse leaders into early discussions about strategic goals, care models, and workflows the technology will touch.

  2. Workflow & Decision Mapping
    Co-map how nurses actually deliver care. This prevents misalignment and identifies where tech can support (not slow) the process.

  3. Design Review & Iteration
    Include nurses in interface reviews and prototype testing. Their input helps teams catch practical issues early.

  4. Testing & Validation
    Empower nurse champions to run simulations and scenario drills. Their feedback shapes realistic training and strong adoption.

  5. Go-Live & Sustainment
    Keep nurses engaged post-launch to identify early friction and guide future optimization.

A Shift in Mindset

We keep asking nurses to adopt technology systems. Maybe it’s time we asked them to participate in the design.

This shift — from user to co-designer — is what truly transforms implementation into activation.

When nurses help decide when and how technology enters their workflows, hospitals achieve better outcomes, smoother transitions, and more confident Day 1 readiness.

Let’s Build the Smarter Path

If your organization is planning a technology rollout or facility activation, consider working with your project team to build a roadmap that aligns technology with the clinical teams who use it most. NIHD has several resources that can guide you through your journey.

NIHD collaborates with clinicians, design professionals and industry partners in the healthcare design process to shape the future of healthcare design.