ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORD SYSTEMS;

PERCEPTION AND EVALUATION AMONG PHYSICIANS IN PAKISTAN

Abstract

Introduction: e-Health is a combination of medical informatics, public health,
business and information technology. Health information technology has increased the
productivity by reengineering of health care but it requires new measurement tools to monitor
the impact of it .e-health is not only for the development of technologies but also it includes
proper planning, thinking, broad thinking to improve healthcare services with the help of
information and communication technology. Objectives: 1) To assess the perceptions of
physicians towards the use, effectiveness and efficiency of EHR 2) To identify the differences
between electronic and paper based records 3) To evaluate the usage of Electronic Health
Records.4) To analyze satisfaction and challenges face by the physicians using EHR. Research
Design: This is an Exploratory and Descriptive Research. In this study hybrid research method
is used which includes qualitative and quantitative research methods. Sampling technique:
For this study, a purposive sample of 43 physicians was selected. The sample size was 60
but 17 responses were incomplete so they were excluded and the final sample size was 43.
Data was collected from two different hospitals of Pakistan which include the physicians from
Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, and Indus Hospital. Of the
43 participants, 51% were from Indus Hospital and 49% were from Shaukat Khanum Memorial
Cancer Hospital and Research Centre. Instrument: A structured questionnaire was used to
collect data and it was collected by email responses and direct interview. EHR Questionnaire:
A questionnaire was used in the study. The EHR Questionnaire has comprised of 24 items. This
questionnaire was developed by Msukwa. B.K.Martin.1 Data Analysis: Data analysis was done
by Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and Microsoft Excel. Procedure: The sample
consisted of physicians from Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre,
and Indus Hospital from Karachi. EHR is a new technology and hospitals are moving towards
it, some are under process and very few like the above mentioned hospitals are using it. The
questionnaire was not complicated. It was a structured questionnaire with easy questions with
multiple options to fill in. Respondents were also acknowledged for their cooperation and
participation in the study. Conclusion: EHR should be used effectively, proper training is needed
to ensure that physicians are able to operate the system and can have maximum benefits from
the technology by utilizing all its applications. The government should encourage adoption of
Electronic Health l Records in Pakistan by developing a public-private partnership. The study
focused also on EHR effectiveness by checking the working of EHR its quick and satisfactory
results its accuracy, adequacy, timeliness, user- friendliness, availability and reliability.