Physicians’ Perceptions of Facilitators and Barriers in Electronic Health Record Education

A significant focus in health care is quality documentation to lower patient safety risks. The local problem at a healthcare organization in the northeastern United States is that some physicians are falling short with quality documentation of patient care in athenaNet, a cloud-based electronic health record (EHR). This qualitative case study was conducted to explore physicians\u27 perceptions of the facilitators and barriers that impact the educational process for quality documentation in EHRs. Attention also focused on identifying physicians\u27 recommendations for enhancing the educational process for quality documentation. Knowles’ adult learning theory served as the conceptual framework. Purposeful sampling was used to select participants who had a minimum of 5 years’ experience as a physician and had worked with multiple EHRs in the past. Individual interviews with 11 physicians were supplemented with review of documents in athenaNet on milestones in physician documentation. Data analysis included coding of interview transcripts and information from documents to identify common themes: (a) preparation for implementation, (b) specialty-specific training, (c) hands-on practice, (d) time limitations on completing training, (e) preparedness for EHR go-live, and (f) additional training resources. Findings of the study were used to develop a white paper to increase the quality of the documentation entered into an EHR, and to lower patient safety risks through more effective continuing education. The study contributes to positive social change through modifications to the current training methodology for the EHR as a solution to assisting physicians to complete quality documentation