title: A national EHR strategy preparedness characterisation model and its application in the South-East European region.
abstract: This paper is concerned with modelling national approaches towards electronic health record systems (NEHRS) development. A model framework is stepwise produced, that allows for the characterisation of the preparedness and the readiness of a country to develop an NEHRS. Secondary data of published reports are considered for the creation of the model. Such sources are identified to mostly originate from within a sample of five developed countries. Factors arising from these sources are identified, coded and scaled, so as to allow for a quantitative application of the model. Instantiation of the latter for the case of the five developed countries is contrasted with the set of countries from South East Europe (SEE). The likely importance and validity of this modelling approach is discussed, using the Delphi method.
authors.affiliation: South East European Research Centre, Thessaloniki, Greece.
authors.forename: Leonidas
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Orfanidis
authors.forename: Panagiotis
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bamidis
authors.forename: Barry
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Eaglestone
mesh_terms: D004059:Diffusion of Innovation; D005061:Europe, Eastern; D016347:Medical Records Systems, Computerized; D017146:Models, Organizational; D016730:Program Development