University of Colorado College of Nursing

I-Collaboratory

During this development phase, the I-Collaboratory concept originated. The I-Collaboratory, a social network for our informatics community, distinguishes us from other graduate programs. The I-Collaboratory was established in 2001 to support our online program. The purpose of the I-Collaboratory was to create a learner-centered environment to support, socialize, mentor and connect students who are engaged in computer-mediated learning. The intent was to decrease learner's feelings of isolation, increase satisfaction, insure quality educational experiences, facilitate professional socialization, retain students and help form connections in the world of health care informatics. The I-Collaboratory served as a framework to create learning partnerships among fellow colleagues; between faculty and learners; between peer mentors and learners; between learners and role models with similar backgrounds, across disciplines (nursing, medicine, psychology, communications or computer science), environments (urban or rural), interests, and between learner and future employers.

The first I-Collaboratory platform was Web4M. It allowed students to chat with each other, use VOIP services, attend real time presentations, review recorded presentations, read job posting and enter into discussions with other colleagues. There was also space for private file and discussion space for individuals. With the evolutions of Web 2.0 tools, the I-Collaboratory now uses social networking tools. This virtual social network allows students 1) to attend webinars related to issues in leadership and learn about career opportunities, 2) participate in an online journal club to examine research, 3) participate in community forums, 4) contribute their knowledge and experience to blogs, 5) interact with colleagues, faculty, alumni and nurse leaders and 6) build their network and connections in health care informatics.

Virtual Clinic on Second Life

Another innovation being developed for use in informatics courses is the virtual clinic in the virtual world of Second Life. Second Life (SL) developed by Linden Labs in 2003 is a large virtual world that contains tens of thousands of square meters of virtual land. There are more than 15 million residents. To interact in Second Life, a user must create a personal avatar that can walk, run and even fly. Avatars can interact with each other through voice over internet protocol (VOIP), through text-based chat sessions or instant messaging. SL is all about experiential learning, being immersed in a virtual environment. It adds another dimension to simulations and allows for role-playing, collaboration and interactions between students and faculty in real time, and the ability to experiment. In nursing, several schools are using Second Life for community health experience, informatics, clinical simulations and for virtual office hours.

At the College of Nursing, we are developing a virtual clinic to be used in our graduate program for health care informatics. The informatics faculty designed the virtual clinic and four senior computer science students are building the clinic in Second Life as their senior project. The College of Nursing purchased the land for this clinic. The instructional designer has created video instruction for students to establish a free Second Life account and create their personal avatar. The informatics program has been piloting the use of Second Life with its students and it has been positively rated. The clinic will be completed in May of 2010 and will be available for students in informatics.

Within Second Life, there will be opportunities for nurses to interact in a virtual clinic environment for some of their coursework. The virtual clinic consists of: 1) clinical exam rooms for observation and interaction with nurses who will be using electronic health records and other health information technologies; 2) a Chief Nursing Officer office; 3) a Chief Information Officer’s office and 4) a conference room complete with a whiteboard for brainstorming, poster board for presentations, a presentation wall for PowerPoint slides or streaming videos, and a library of necessary IT documents, policies and resources for students to use during their conference meetings and an auditorium for presentations and guest lecturers.

The virtual clinic can be used in systems life cycle course so that nurses may interact with each other to determine data requirements and simulate team decision making. Learners can interact with IT professionals in stakeholder meetings to select systems in the conference room of the virtual clinic. This innovative approach adds a new dimension of learning in an immersive environment that uses constructivist learning strategies.

Colorado Health Information Technology Education Collaborative (HITEC)

In May 2010, the University of Colorado College of Nursing has been awarded $2.6 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds to advance the widespread adoption and meaningful use of Health Information Technology (HIT) by educating professionals to work in this rapidly growing field. To achieve these goals, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sibelius has enlisted the talent and resources of some of the nation’s leading universities, community colleges and major research centers. As one of the nine universities to receive monies for university-based workforce training, the health care informatics program is collaborating with the schools of medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, public health and business to prepare a workforce capable of leading the adoption and implementation of health information technologies.

The Colorado Health Information Technology Education Collaborative (HITEC) will produce trained professionals for vital, highly specialized health IT roles. The goal of Colorado HITEC is to expand and integrate existing education programs at the University of Colorado to prepare a workforce of over 100 professionals that are capable of serving as clinical leaders (CMIOS, CNIOs and Directors of Informatics), Health Information Management Exchange Specialist, or Health IT Sub-Specialists, and master’s prepared Health Care Informatics Research Development Scientists. The Colorado HITEC will provide accessible interdisciplinary learning opportunities that will lead to one of three one-year certificate programs or a two-year graduate degree in health care informatics. Recruitment efforts will form 15 partnerships with key organizations to insure that 25 percent of graduates represent critical access or state designate disproportionate share hospitals and 25 percent represent certified rural health clinics and federally designated community health clinics.