HJAR Mar/Apr 2025

50 MAR / APR 2025 I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF ARKANSAS NURSING COLUMN NURSING healthcare. This is especially true for nurs- es. It is well-known that the nursing pro- fession is laden with information — infor- mation retrieval, information retention, information transfer, information utili- zation, and information documentation. Often, the sheer quantity of information encircling nurses contributes to high cog- nitive workload, cognitive overload, and mental exhaustion. Cognitive workload “can be defined as the amount of informa- tion a person holds and processes within working memory.” 1 Furthermore, work- ing memory is the “ability to remember and use relevant information while in the middle of an activity.” 1 Nurses consistent- ly working under elevated mental work- loads experience increased risk of error, increased levels of burnout, decreased professional satisfaction, as well as unsat- isfactory overall well-being. 2 A2024 review draws attention to the fact that human cognitive resources are finite. 3 High cog- nitive workloads that require multitasking under pressure, constant interruption in mental processing, and even disturbanc- es of sleep can lead to lessened vigilance, diminished sensory information process- IN 2020, the Arkansas STEMI Advisory Council (AR-STAC), now the State Heart Attack Advisory Council (SHACC), es- tablished an initiative seeking unified communication throughout the state in hope of improving reperfusion times for patients suffering acute heart attacks. A significant barrier to achieving this out- come was directly related to fragmented and ineffective communication. Eventu- ally, in coordination with the SHACC, the Arkansas Department of Health provided the opportunity to utilize new communi- cation technology — a mobile communica- tion platform called Pulsara. This platform connects multidisciplinary teams through one-touch, HIPAA-compliant, and easy- to-use mobile technology. It streamlines and unifies inter- and intra-facility com- munication by utilizing voice-to-text, audiovisual, and image capturing tech- nologies. As anticipated, communicating through Pulsara has demonstrated faster, more efficient, and safer care through en- hanced communication. As the use of Pul- sara spread through Arkansas, it became evident that the tool not only streamlines communication, but also reduces the cog- nitive workload that many experience in ing, slow decision-making and clinical judgement, as well as decreased task per- formance due to scarcity of cognitive re- sources. 3 Some research describes the na- ture of the nursing workflow as turbulent, fragmented, chaotic, and nonlinear. 2 An- other study of thousands of nurses around the world highlights that the prevalence of high mental workload amongst nurses is around 54%. 4 Is this cognitive work- load a given in the nursing profession, or are there solutions waiting to be utilized? How can nurse leaders recognize signs of cognitive overload?What measures can be taken to reduce the cognitive burden? Can information technology help? Information technology (IT) is inter- woven throughout healthcare and can be used to sustain highly efficient and safe work environments for nurses. 5 At one point, health systems turned to the elec- tronic health record (EHR) to consolidate and streamline information; however, EHR technology is for entry of interventions and storing of medical records, not necessarily to promote collaboration, teamwork, and communication. However, we have the ca- pability to not only promote collaboration, teamwork, and communication, but to Utilizing Enhanced Communication Tools to Reduce Nursing Cognitive Workload