Evaluation of electronic health records from viewpoint of patients.
OBJECTIVE
To clarify the impacts of electronic health records (EHRs) on patients, especially patient's satisfaction by using questionnaire.


METHODS
Surveys were conducted at three hospitals. One of them was surveyed three times; three-months before (pre-EHR) and three-months after (post-3mo EHR) and nine-months after implementation of EHR (post-9mo EHR). The other two hospitals (metropolitan-stable EHR and suburban-stable EHR) spent more than three years after implementation. Thus there were five stages of EHR.


METHODS
Comparisons were made among these five stages.


RESULTS
The longer EHR has been operating, the more patients answered waiting time shortened. The patients in pre-EHR (73%) expected the benefit of cooperation between hospitals and clinics using EHR more. The longer experience of EHR a hospital had, the more patients were explained by watching the screen. Although overall satisfaction was high, there was no difference among the stages except metropolitan-stable EHR.


CONCLUSIONS
Main benefits of EHR are reducing patient's waiting time, and enhancing explanation to patients. However it does not have significant effects to improve patient's satisfaction.
Koide
Daisuke
D
Clinical Bioinformatics Research Unit, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan. koide.tky@umin.ac.jp
Asonuma
Motohiro
M
Naito
Keiko
K
Igawa
Sumito
S
Shimizu
Shiro
S
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006751:Hospital Information Systems; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D016347:Medical Records Systems, Computerized; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction