The assessment of acceptance and identification of barriers to use of electronic medical records by doctors in emergency centres in Cape Town, South Africa

Thesis (MFamMed)--Stellenbosch University, 2017.ENGLISH SUMMARY: Introduction: Millions of people in developing countries face serious health risks. It is believed that incorporating technology into healthcare is one way to overcome some of these challenges faced by developing countries. However, acceptance of electronic medical records (EMRs) into daily practice has been poor despite these potential advantages. In order to realise the potential benefits from EMR technologies, they must be adopted broadly and assimilated deeply across healthcare settings. The study aimed to assess acceptance and barriers to use prior to implementation of EMRs. Methods: The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology model was used to assess technology acceptance. A self-administered questionnaire-based survey was sent to emergency centre (EC) doctors working in district hospitals in the Cape Town metropolis. Results: With a 73% (n=105) response rate, participants believed that EMRs would be both useful in their practice and improve their productivity. Almost 50% (n=51) of participants felt that they would find EMRs easy to use and approximately 60% (n=61) felt they would receive management support. However, the participants felt that the necessary resources would not be available for success, specifically a lack of financial investment, training and support as well as poor infrastructure and project management skills. Conclusion: The study overall indicates that the majority of doctors are willing to use EMRs in their daily practice. Barriers to successful implementation were similar to those found in similar studies conducted in other environments, and include financial, technical and change process barriers. There is a need to conduct further studies involving other cadres of staff including ECs where EMRs are already in use.AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Geen opsomming opsommingMaster