Barriers in Implementing EHR
An electronic health record is a digital version of ma patient’s paper chart. EHRS are real time,
patient-centered records that make information available instantly, securely to authorized users
only. Her contains treatment histories of the patients. EHR plays a vital role in the health IT.
Barriers in implementing EHR
The EHRs are expensive and require major investment to implement. The applications of EHR are
not standardized which calls in a threat for privacy. Initially until they are trained and got used to
it EHR are more difficult to use and maintain that paper-based records. The EHRs implementation
reduces productivity and disturbs workflow initially.
The technical aspect:
The technical aspect of the EHR can be one of the barriers in implementing EHR such as
connecting to the system and internet can be difficult for a system that is in a rural setting over an
urban setting.
The cost:
The Health Information Technology such as EHRs can be expensive in both implementation and
usage. Expenses that go in training, support, and physical infrastructure itself can be a barrier
especially for small practices. It is important to layout the funding beforehand. There will be
increased storage requirements of the data which might be increasing the costs of implementing
EHR.
The training:
Not everyone will be on board with the idea of implementing the use of EHR. Because of the all
the initial difficulty that goes in training and some of them might not be technologically savvy this
might be a barrier in implementing EHR. Training is one of the most important parts for successful
EHR implementation.
Concerns with privacy:
Some healthcare providers and patients may be concerned about privacy while using EHRs.
Common concerns include loss of information due to cyber hacks.
Data Migration:
Migrating the existing data to a new EHR is a time-consuming job. In addition, it contains private
and sensitive information that should be migrated with care and accuracy.
Sources:
Ajami, S., & Arab-Chadegani, R. (2013). Barriers to implement Electronic Health Records
(EHRs). Materia socio-medica, 25(3), 213–215. https://doi.org/10.5455/msm.2013.25.213-215
https://www.ehrinpractice.com/the-top-three-ehr-implementation-challenges-faced-by-practices688.html