329 The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing �� Vol 41, No 7, 2010 Ms. Kleib is Faculty Lecturer and doctoral student, Dr. Sales is Pro- fessor, Mr. Lima is data analyst, Ms. Andrea-Baylon is data analyst, and Ms. Beaith is research assistant, Faculty of Nursing, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The authors disclose that they have no significant financial interests in any product or class of products discussed directly or indirectly in this activity, including research support. Presented as a poster at the AMIA Annual Symposium, November 14-18, 2009, San Francisco, California. Address correspondence to Anne E. Sales, RN, MN, PhD, Faculty of Nursing, University of Alberta, 7-80 University Terrace Building, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2T4. Received: April 8, 2009 Accepted: September 30, 2009 Posted: May 7, 2010. doi:10.3928/00220124-20100503-08 Rrecognized ecently, knowledge in nursing informatics has been as a core competency for evidence-based nursing practice (Bakken et al., 2004 Ehnfors & Grobe, 2004). Nursing informatics has been defined as ���a com- bination of computer science, information science and nursing science designed to assist in the management and processing of nursing data, information and knowledge to support the practice of nursing and the delivery of nursing care��� (Graves & Corcoran-Perry, 1996, p. 15). Registered nurses (RNs) are the largest group of health care profes- sionals in the United States and in most developed coun- tries. As the health care sector becomes more dependent on health informatics and applications of health technol- ogy, RN preparedness in informatics is increasingly es- sential for effective implementation and use of technology (Eley, Fallon, Soar, Buikstra, & Hegney, 2008 Hart, 2008). A number of studies have articulated the need to build this competency among future and practicing nurses, nursing students, and nurse educators. Little is known about infor- matics education among nurses in general and continuing education in informatics in particular. Understanding the factors or characteristics associated with nurses��� decision to pursue continuing education in informatics can help to identify trends and patterns associated with this type of education, thus helping to guide the future development of these programs. BACKGROUND During the past two decades, the demand for formal and continuing education programs in nursing infor- Continuing Education in Informatics Among Registered Nurses in the United States in 2000 Manal Kleib, RN, MSN, MBA, Anne E. Sales, RN, MN, PhD, Isac Lima, BA, Melba Andrea-Baylon, MSPH, and Amy Beaith, MISt Background: Continuing education is one method for acquiring competency in informatics among nurses. How- ever, little is known about nurses��� participation in continuing education in informatics and the factors or characteristics that motivate them to pursue this type of education. This article identifies the proportion and characteristics of U.S. registered nurses reporting continuing education in informatics in 2000. Methods: A secondary data analysis was conducted with data from the National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses. More than 25,000 nurses responded to this survey in 2000. Bivariate and logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the association of reported continuing education in informatics with demographic, educational, and other char- acteristics of respondents to the survey. Results: Of the respondents, 21% reported continuing education in informatics in the year before the survey. The probability of continuing education in informatics increased with Internet access and decreased for nurses working out- side hospitals or providing direct patient care. Conclusion: Relatively low proportions of registered nurses report continuing education in informatics, but some opportunities exist to increase rates. J Contin Educ Nurs 2010 41(7):329-336. abstract

330 Copyright �� SLACK Incorporated TABLE 1 DESCRIptIvE AND BIvARIAtE ANAlySES Of fACtORS ASSOCIAtED wIth NURSES��� REpORtING Of CONtINUING EDUCAtION IN INfORmAtICS (n = 35,456) variable frequency (%) Reports Continuing Education in Informatics (%) Does Not Report Continuing Education in Informatics (%) p Age (years) .0001 25 649 (1.8) 17.3 82.7 25 to 44 16,652 (47.4) 19.3 80.7 45 to 64 16,000 (45.5) 24.4 75.6 65 1,851 (5.3) 10.8 89.2 Race or ethnicity .80 White 30,284 (86.0) 21.1 78.9 Non-White 4,950 (14.0) 21.0 79.0 Gender .01 Female 33,423 (94.2) 21.2 78.8 Male 2,059 (5.8) 18.8 81.2 Marital and family status .0001 Married with children 6 years old 2,716 (7.7) 16.1 83.9 Married with children 6 years old 10,375 (29.4) 23.9 76.1 Married with children, all ages 2,666 (7.6) 18.8 81.2 Married without children 9,490 (26.9) 21.2 78.8 Widowed/separated/divorced with children 2,793 (7.9) 20.7 79.3 Widowed/separated/divorced without children 3,593 (10.2) 21.1 78.9 Married/widowed/separated/divorced without children information 248 (0.7) 16.1 83.9 Never married 3,371 (9.6) 18.8 81.2 Highest level of nursing education .0001 Diploma 7,638 (21.6) 21.0 79.0 Associate���s degree 12,288 (34.7) 20.6 79.4 Baccalaureate degree 11,812 (33.3) 20.4 79.6 Master���s degree or doctorate 3,676 (10.4) 25.1 74.9 Years of experience since first degree in nursing .0001 5 6,449 (18.2) 17.5 82.5 6 to 10 5,037 (14.3) 19.8 80.2 11 to 15 4,668 (13.2) 20.6 79.4 16 to 25 9,668 (27.3) 22.8 77.2 26 9,552 (27.0) 22.7 77.3 Current enrollment status in a nursing education program .06 Enrolled 2,356 (6.7) 22.6 77.4 Not enrolled 33,006 (93.3) 21.0 79.0