Gaining experience without hospital's support

[Ativan]

Ok, so there are a million posts out there on how to get into nursing informatics, and most of them suggest trying to take on some informatics-related projects at your organization, like being a Super User. What if, hypothetically, your boss and/or organization was not being super supportive of you trying to get more involved and you had to go outside the hospital to get more experience and education?

Things I'm looking into:

1. Volunteering in the community in computer-related volunteer roles (to demonstrate basic computer experience/skills)

2. Learning about computer programming, databases, and general informatics concepts with online CEU courses or MOOCs (through Lynda, Coursera, etc.)- can I put this on a resume?!! Is education in programs like Excel and Access worthwhile, or do employers mostly want to see experience with the big EHRs?

3. Joining HIMSS or ANIA-CARING and going to events and/or conferences (expensive, is it worth it if you're new to the field?)

4. Doing a formal education program like a master's (expensive, and seems that this isn't that useful unless you have experience).

Anything I'm missing? Any thoughts on what types of courses or skills would be most transferrable to NI (Excel, SQL, programming)?

Thanks!

[Ativan]

Thanks everyone for all the great responses so far! I have two additional, but related questions (and updates):

1) I did make some progress towards becoming a Super User! However, I'm struggling to find resources to learn more about advanced features of our EHR (Epic). I got one class when I got hired, I've forgotten most of the stuff I don't use every day (like smart phrases), and I can't find ANY additional resources on our intranet or through our continuing education department. Are there any resources out there for learning how to do things in Epic? I know it's different in every hospital that uses it, but I'm wondering if they have videos or courses or forums or any resources I can use?

2) Networking with people in the IT department is a common theme, and I couldn't agree more. Do you think that night shift workers have an equal or at least adequate opportunity to network with the IT department or work on IT-related projects, or should I really be focusing on getting a day shift position? I have worked both, and I find that I'm more stressed and less able to chat with my co-workers and play around with the computer on days, but maybe the networking opportunities outweigh the extra stress and busy-ness of days?

Thanks!

[gypsyd8]

This just caught my eye because your hypothetical scenario is my unfortunate reality. The facility where I work is implementing some major changes and I tried to get in as a superuser-but in my department they were cherry picked by the Director from her "favorites." That was not the case in other departments, people had the chance to volunteer. Instead I got in as a student (I am getting my MSN and the school contracts with the facility for clinicals). The man from corporate overseeing the implementation straight up told me my degree (MSN in Leadership) was useless and that a MSN in Informatics was more valued. I do not even know why I am here anymore.

[Ativan]

This just caught my eye because your hypothetical scenario is my unfortunate reality. The facility where I work is implementing some major changes and I tried to get in as a superuser-but in my department they were cherry picked by the Director from her "favorites." That was not the case in other departments, people had the chance to volunteer. Instead I got in as a student (I am getting my MSN and the school contracts with the facility for clinicals). The man from corporate overseeing the implementation straight up told me my degree (MSN in Leadership) was useless and that a MSN in Informatics was more valued. I do not even know why I am here anymore.

\

gypsyd8, don't give up! That's one person's opinion, and if he really said that your MSN is "useless," he sounds pretty untactful and overly confident. He might know what is valued by him in that organization, but not in all organizations for all time. Basically, the message I have gotten from lots of reading and posting and discussions with people in nursing informatics is that just a degree (ex: MSN in Informatics) doesn't matter much. The most important factors for getting your foot in the door with nursing informatics seem to be hands-on experience and networking. And it sounds like you are in a great position through this internship/clinical opportunity to get involved with a project and do some networking!

It's all about how you position things in your resume, cover letter, and interview. I have an MSN with a specialty in a field of nursing I don't actively use, but in my experience, employers just look at the MSN in general as a check box, no one has ever asked me about my "specialty." I then tailor my resume to the job I'm applying for (focusing on work experience, projects, certifications that are relevant). So put the MSN under education, then really play up your informatics and computer experience elsewhere on the resume. And if there are any courses in your MSN that you think would bring you valuable skills to the job you are applying for, list those under education too (ex: coursework in program evaluation, quality improvement, change management, project management, negotiations, research methods, biostatistics, etc.). Most of those "soft skills" are also valued in nursing informatics jobs, like any job.

And when you're doing that clinical experience, don't let that one guy get you down. Act like he could be gone at any moment (he could), and network with/impress everyone else there by showing up and being amazing and hard-working. If that particular job at that particular facility doesn't work out for you because they really want the MSN in Informatics, just keep looking! I have done tons of job research, and I know that particular degree is not the determining factor everywhere.

Good luck! Consider yourself lucky that you have this clinical opportunity and make the most of it!

[ArmyRN789]

And don't worry so much about the title of the MSN; informatics, information systems, systems analyst, etc. Just go for a degree that interests you and the jobs will follow. Informatics allows you to work in ANY area of information technology, not just nursing and physician workflow, documentation and CPOE. It's a wide-spectrum field!