Methods of Information in Medicine · 2008 · 17 citations · 0 references
ComputingHealth InformaticsInformation SystemsClinical Information SystemsElectronic Health RecordsPatient SafetyElectronic Health Record IntegrationHealth Information System EvaluationHospital Information SystemsPatient SatisfactionPatient Satisfaction MeasurementUsability In Clinical SystemsElectronic Health Record UseElectronic Medical RecordsElectronic Record SystemsElectronic Records SystemsHospital Electronic Health RecordsLikert Scale DesignUser SatisfactionUser Satisfaction Measurement
Successful implementation of electronic clinical information systems requires understanding users’ attitudes toward both paper and electronic components. The study aims to examine how users’ attitudes toward the system being replaced vary across dimensions. A cross‑sectional survey of 346 nurses and physicians measured attitudes in three dimensions—system quality satisfaction, perceived usefulness, and perceived impact on care—within a dual paper‑and‑electronic record system. Users reported wide variation in satisfaction, with electronic record attributes scoring higher overall, but nurses favored paper components, and attitudes across quality, usefulness, and impact dimensions were strongly interrelated.
Since it is important to develop strategies for the successful implementation of electronic clinical information systems, the aim of this study is to explore where, and to what extent, users' attitudes toward the former system that is being replaced may vary.A cross-sectional survey of 346 nurses and physicians practicing in two Canadian teaching hospitals resulted in a total response rate of 63%. User attitudes were measured in three dimensions: a) user satisfaction with the system's quality attributes, b) perceived system usefulness, and c) perceived impact on quality of care and patient safety. The current system (the one being replaced) was analyzed as a dual system composed of both paper-based and electronic records.The results on user satisfaction demonstrate a wide variation in opinions, with satisfaction ranging from 4.2 to 7.7 on a 10-point disagree-agree, Likert scale. The quality attributes varied by record type, with differences that were systematically in favor of the electronic record component, which received higher scores. The results also highlighted large differences by user group. Physicians and nurses systematically rated the two record formats differently. The nurses were more satisfied with the attributes of the paper-based record. Multivariate regression analyses results also revealed strong interdependencies among the three dimensions of user attitudes, to the extent that perceived system usefulness was strongly correlated with system quality attributes and the system outcomes were also correlated, although less strongly, with the two former system dimensions.Understanding users' attitudes toward a clinical information system in use, both in its paper and electronic aspects, is crucial for developing more successful implementation strategies for electronic record systems.