Electronic health record (EHR) simulation into biomedical informatics course improves students ’ understanding of the impact of EHR documentation burden and usability on clinical workflow

AbstractThe usability of electronic health record (EHR) systems has been shown to affect clinician burden and productivity and has historically been a  significant barrier to EHR adoption. It is therefore imperative that Biomedical Informatics (BMI) practitioners be acquainted with fundamental usability issues that can have a negative impact on clinicians’ experience and satisfaction in using EHR systems. We designed a hands-on activity to help BMI students appreciate the importance of usability as well as identify common usability issues in EHR systems. Students enrolled in an Introduction to Biomedical Informatics graduate course were asked to enter a visit note into OpenEMR after a hypothetical patient encounter. After entering the dat a, the students had to report their experience with the EHR system and answer questions about its usability. Students spent over 1 h completing the clinic visit note and required the use of the manuals and tutorials to complete the note. Students were able to identify documentation challenges, navi gational issues, shortcomings in the GUI, and other key aspects of usability. HIT related burden have been documented but the issues still persist. Students were able to describe the documentation burden that clinicians experience and identify common usability issues reported in the literature. This activity emphasized the need for simulations that highlight informatics professionals’ role in the design, implementation, and evaluation of hea...
Source: Health and Technology - Category: Information Technology Source Type: research