title: Clinician's assessments of outpatient electronic medical record alert and reminder usability and usefulness requirements.
abstract: Electronic medical record alerts and reminders are increasingly employed as a means of decreasing medical errors and increasing the quality and cost-effectiveness of care. However, clinicians indicate that alerts and reminders can be either help or hindrance. Discerning the elements that determine which they will be, and the requirements of a helpful alert or reminder, was the focus of this study. We convened three focus groups, comprised of a total of 16 participants. During analysis, five themes emerged: Efficiency, Usefulness, Information Content, User Interface, and Workflow. In addition there were some New Ideas and Surprises. Specific usability and usefulness requirements emerged from within the themes and these are described.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Kaiser Permanente, Portland, OR, USA.
authors.forename: Michael A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Krall
authors.forename: Dean F
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Sittig
mesh_terms: D000554:Ambulatory Care Facilities; D000555:Ambulatory Care Information Systems; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001292:Attitude to Computers; D017144:Focus Groups; D006747:Hospital Communication Systems; D006801:Humans; D016347:Medical Records Systems, Computerized; D017010:Reminder Systems