U. of Missouri to study relationships between IT, nursing home care

University of Missouri researchers announced the launch of a national study to examine relationships between IT systems and specific components of nursing home care, including resident care, clinical support and administrative activities.

While studies link IT use to improved quality of patient care, no recent nationwide studies have evaluated the types of IT systems that affect certain aspects of nursing home care, according to the university’s announcement.

“The last national study of IT in nursing homes was completed nearly a decade ago, and since then, nursing home administrators have shifted the types of technologies being used,” said Greg Alexander, associate professor in the university's Sinclair School of Nursing and the study’s lead researcher.

The study aims to determine which IT capabilities lead to high-quality care in order to benchmark best practices of IT implementation in nursing homes throughout the country. Also, the study seeks to uncover greater understanding on how IT implementation occurs in nursing homes, so that knowledge can inform future educational programs for nursing homes making that transition.