A Framework for Antecedents to Health Information Systems Uptake by Healthcare Professionals: An Exploratory Study of Electronic Medical Records

Abstract

Health information systems (HISs) are essential information systems used by organisations and individuals for various purposes. Past research has studied different types of HIS, such as rostering systems, Electronic Medical Records (EMRs), and Personal Health Records (PHRs). Although several past confirmatory studies have quantitatively examined EMR uptake by health professionals, there is a lack of exploratory and qualitative studies that uncover various drivers of healthcare professionals’ uptake of EMRs. Applying an exploratory and qualitative approach, this study introduces various antecedents of healthcare professionals’ uptake of EMRs. This study conducted 78 semi-structured, open-ended interviews with 15 groups of healthcare professional users of EMRs in two large Australian hospitals. Data analysis of qualitative data resulted in proposing a framework comprising 23 factors impacting healthcare professionals’ uptake of EMRs, which are categorised into ten main categories: perceived benefits of EMR, perceived difficulties, hardware/software compatibility, job performance uncertainty, ease of operation, perceived risk, assistance society, user confidence, organisational support, and technological support. Our findings have important implications for various practitioner groups, such as healthcare policymakers, hospital executives, hospital middle and line managers, hospitals’ IT departments, and healthcare professionals using EMRs. Implications of the findings for researchers and practitioners are provided herein in detail.