MONITORING AND EVALUATING ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS SYSTEMS IN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE HOSPITALS IN THE ETHEKWINI AREA, KWAZULU NATAL, SOUTH AFRICA

Abstract

Monitoring and evaluating the electronic health records system is one of the most essential aspects of assessing the impact of utilising technology in the health sector. The study examined how hospitals monitored and evaluated EHR systems implementation and operation in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa. According to the National Digital Strategy for South Africa (2019-2024:26), there is no defined process detailing the monitoring and evaluation plan in public and private health; the monitoring and evaluation are still being developed, concentrating on actions required to meet strategic intervention milestones. The study adopted the Leading Change Model (LCM) in integration with the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). The models were adopted in the study to assess monitoring and evaluation in the implementation and operation of electronic health records systems in the public and private hospitals in the eThekwini Area. The study utilized both the cross-sectional survey and the qualitative case study designs to compare public and private hospitals monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of electronic health records systems. The population for this study consists of three groups, or strata. The first group consists of record management personnel, patient administrators, and filing or ward clerks who deal mainly with hospital administration. In terms of monitoring productivity, both hospitals monitored the efficiency of users in the utilisation of the system, but there was no proper strategy documented. Hospitals monitored the EHR systems based on what worked for them.