In a weekly January radio address, President Obama continued to emphasize his desire to transition healthcare to a nationwide system of computerized medical records that will save both money and lives. The president supports this transition with the overall goal of preventing medical error.

President Obama has previously pledged $50 billion over five years to support adoption and use of electronic health records. This focus represents a significant part of his healthcare reform package. President Obama also has predicted that all Americans will have a digital record within five years.

President Obama has frequently reported the need for a new science and technology infrastructure. He includes laying down new broadband lines to boost the ability of U.S. businesses to compete on a world-wide scale.

In his 2004 State of the Union address, President Bush brought attention to healthcare Information Technology. President Bush also appointed the first healthcare IT coordinator, Robert M. Kolodner, MD. Bush's Health and Human Services Secretary, Michael Leavitt was an advocate for healthcare IT.

With President Obama's focus on upgrading healthcare technologies comes a renewed emphasis on nursing informatics. The new BSN Essentials document (1) certainly reflects that focus. As nursing faculty we need to be certain that we are current and competent when we are teaching our students who will enter this digital and technologically oriented healthcare environment. Sources of federal funding to bolster IT education for our nursing students should be on the horizon.

Source: Monegain, B. January 12, 2009. Obama pledges hundreds of thousand of new jobs by boosting health care. HealthcareITNews. Available at:http://file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Robin%20Pattillo/Desktop/obama-pled. Accessed on January 21, 2009.

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