Multidisciplinary user experience of a newly implemented electronic patient record in Ireland: An exploratory qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: Implementation of an Electronic Patient Record (EPR) in a key milestone in the digital strategy of modern healthcare organisations. The implementation of EPR systems can be viewed as challenging and complex. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to investigate user perspectives and experiences of the implementation of an Electronic Medical Record in a major academic teaching hospital, with simultaneous 'go-live' across the whole hospital taking place. METHODS: Focus groups and individual in-depth interviews were conducted with stakeholders and users (n = 105), approximately nine months post-EPR implementation. The study explored EPR users' perceptions using an extended theoretical framework of the DeLone and McLean Information Systems Success Model (2003), which measured information systems, system quality, information quality, service quality, use/perceived usefulness & user satisfaction and net benefits. RESULTS: Staff engagement and satisfaction was high and the EPR is accepted as the new standard way of completing care. There was agreement that the EPR affords transparency, and greater accountability. There was some concern expressed regarding impact of the EPR on interprofessional and patient/provider interactions and communication. Physicians reported the inputting of social history through free text as an issue of concern and time consuming. The Big Bang approach with mandatory conversion was key to the successful adoption of EPR. There was consensus across professional and administrative respondents that there was no appetite to return to paper-based records. CONCLUSION: The successful roll out of the EPR reflects the digital readiness of healthcare providers and organisations. The potential for unintended consequences on work process requires continual monitoring. A key future benefit of the EPR will be the capacity to reach a broader understanding and analysis of variation in processes and outcomes within healthcare organisations. It is clear that skills in data analytics will be needed to mine data successfully.

Successfully implementing a national electronic health record: a rapid umbrella review.

AIM: To summarize the findings from literature reviews with a view to identifying and exploring the key factors which impact on the success of an EHR implementation across different healthcare contexts. INTRODUCTION: Despite the widely recognised benefits of electronic health records (EHRs), their full potential has not always been achieved, often as a consequence of the implementation process. As more countries launch national EHR programmes, it is critical that the most up-to-date and relevant international learnings are shared with key stakeholders. METHODS: A rapid umbrella review was undertaken in collaboration with a multidisciplinary panel of knowledge-users and experts from Ireland. A comprehensive literature review was completed (2019) across several search engines (PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, Embase, Web of Science, IEEE Xplore, ACM Digital Library, ProQuest, Cochrane) and Gray literature. Identified studies (n = 5,040) were subject to eligibility criterion and identified barriers and facilitators were analysed, reviewed, discussed and interpreted by the expert panel. RESULTS: Twenty-seven literature reviews were identified which captured the key organizational, human and technological factors for a successful EHR implementation according to various stakeholders across different settings. Although the size, type and culture of the healthcare setting impacted on the organizational factors, each was deemed important for EHR success; Governance, leadership and culture, End-user involvement, Training, Support, Resourcing, and Workflows. As well as organizational differences, individual end-users have varying Skills and characteristics, Perceived benefits and incentives, and Perceived changes to the health ecosystem which were also critical to success. Finally, the success of the EHR technology depended on Usability, Interoperability, Adaptability, Infrastructure, Regulation, standards and policies, and Testing. CONCLUSION: Fifteen inter-linked organizational, human and technological factors emerged as important for successful EHR implementations across primary, secondary and long-term care settings. In determining how to employ these factors, the local context, individual end-users and advancing technology must also be considered.