Abstract
Electronic health records (EHRs) have an impact on physicians’ well-being and stress levels. We studied physicians’ experiences with EHRs and their experienced time pressure and self-rated stress by an electronic questionnaire sent to Finnish physicians aged under 65 in 2017. Our sample was 2980 physicians working in the public sector, health care centers (35.5%) or hospitals (64.5%). Experienced technical problems were positively associated with experienced time pressure, whereas user-friendliness of the EHRs was negatively associated with experienced time pressure. Low perceived support for internal cooperation was associated with high levels of time pressure in hospitals. Those experiencing high levels of technical problems were 1.3 times more likely to experience stress compared to those experiencing low levels of technical problems. Better user-friendliness of the EHRs was associated with lower levels of self-rated stress. In both working environments but more strongly in primary health care, technical problems were associated with self-rated stress. Technical problems and user-friendliness of EHRs are the main factors associated with time pressure and self-rated stress. Health care environments differ in the nature of workflow having different demands on the EHRs. Developing EHR systems should consider the special needs of different environments and workflows, enabling better work well-being amongst physicians.
Highlights
Electronic health records (EHRs) present a threat to physicians’ work well-being
Developing EHR systems should consider the special needs of different environments and workflows, enabling better work well-being amongst physicians
Poorly functioning EHRs may predispose physicians to time pressure and stress, and this may vary according to working environment, for example, due to differences in information chaos in the work environment. In light of these theoretical frameworks, we examined the associations of EHR-related variables with time pressure and stress and how these associations differed according to working environment
Summary
Electronic health records (EHRs) present a threat to physicians’ work well-being. Finnish physicians graded their EHRs below average, and there have not been significant improvements in the average grades during years 2010, 2014, 2017 [1,2,3,4,5,6]. A longitudinal 9-year study found the strain still increasing, especially in primary care environment and among those in leading positions [7]. A study from the same follow-up data found that cognitive workload predicted stress related to poorly functioning information systems (ISs), as did poor teamwork and time pressure. Job satisfaction on the other hand predicted less stress [8]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
