The Adoption of Electronic Health Records Among Nurses in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Introduction: The transition to Electronic Health Records (EHRs) from paper-based patient records has presented various challenges, such as coordinating care, usability of software interfaces, privacy and cybersecurity issues, new types of medication errors, and psychological distress leading to burnout and a negative user experience. Similar difficulties have been observed at a Specialized Cardiac Centre in Saudi Arabia that recently implemented new EHRs software with nurses expressing dissatisfaction towards the changes.

Objectives: This study aimed analyse the factors influencing the adoption of EHRs among nurses at a Specialized Cardiac Centre in Saudi Arabia.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was utilized to collect data from 141 clinical nurses at Specialized Cardiac Centre in Saudi Arabia that used EHRs in delivering direct patient care at inpatient, ambulatory, and specialised nurses’ units from October and November 2023.

Results: The data were analysed using IBM SPSS version 24.0. The results show that 23.4% of male nurses and 76.6% female nurses were expressed their acceptance towards the adoptions of EHRs in the hospital. The regression analysis was carried out to determine the association between the EHR usability, digital competency, attitude towards technology, organisational training on perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use. The study found that factors are associated with perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use.

Conclusions: EHRs facilitate the digitalization of medical records and provide healthcare professionals with the ability to access patient data in real-time, thus improving the quality of care and reducing the likelihood of medical errors. However, the adoption of EHRs is not without its challenges. There are several factors that influence the adoption of EHRs, including the digital skills and attitudes of healthcare professionals, the functionalities of the system, and support from the organization. In conclusion, the adoption of EHRs has the potential to revolutionize the healthcare industry.