Gregg Andrea C
University of Florida College of Nursing, Health Science Center-Jacksonville, Jacksonville, Fla., USA.
J Nurs Adm. 2002 Feb;32(2):71-8. doi: 10.1097/00005110-200202000-00004.
Increasing demands are being placed on nursing administrators to manage the cost-efficiency and quality-effectiveness of the nursing service organization. One effective administrative tool that can be used for both internal management and external reporting of a nursing service organization performance is the performance management data system described in this article. While efforts are underway to build essential elements of a performance management data system, including the structure and content of nursing-sensitive databases and data management methods, no consensus has been reached. The author reviews the relevant literature and offers guidelines to take the nursing administrator through the process of developing a performance management data system. Beginning with a conceptualization of the nursing service organization as a system, the 5-phased process moves through data variable selection, data variable measurement, and data analysis to the final internal and external reporting of the organization's performance.
