Teaching Informatics Competencies within Nursing Education: A Scoping Review of Teaching Strategies

Abstract

As healthcare delivery becomes increasingly digital, nursing informatics knowledge has become essential for nurses to participate effectively in digitally enabled healthcare environments. The Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing (CASN) released updated nursing informatics entry-to-practice competencies in 2025 to inform nursing education in Canada. However, the integration of informatics knowledge and content into nursing curricula and professional practice education remains inconsistent. Mapping the teaching strategies used by nursing educators to support these competencies is a necessary step toward understanding current educational practices.To identify teaching strategies currently employed to support the development of nursing informatics knowledge and competencies in undergraduate, graduate, and professional nursing education.The search strategy included six electronic databases: Scopus, Web of Science, CINAHL, ERIC, Embase, and Medline. Key search terms were synonyms and combinations of "informatics competencies," "nursing informatics," and "education." Articles were included if they specifically described nursing informatics competencies and how they were taught to nursing students and practicing nurses. The papers were independently reviewed by two reviewers, and a thematic analysis was conducted to identify teaching strategies.A total of 120 publications were included in the scoping review. Seven strategies to teach nursing informatics were identified: (1) integration of electronic health records into laboratory simulations; (2) integration of informatics competency frameworks; (3) accessing online educational resources; (4) integration of mobile technologies; (5) informatics- competent educators; (6) integrating patient safety and data ethics; and (7) interdisciplinary collaboration.There is an urgent need to align nursing education with the rapid rise of technologies to prepare nurses for safe, competent, and person-centered digital care. This review highlights diverse, CASN-aligned teaching strategies that support informatics competency development across all levels of nursing education. The findings offer practical guidance for educators and inform cirriculum planning and professional practice education in digitally-enabled environments.