title: Use of electronic health records by child primary healthcare providers in Europe.
abstract: There is limited data on the use and functionality level of electronic health records (EHRs) supporting primary child health care in Europe. Our objective was to determine European primary child healthcare providers' use of EHRs, and functionality level of the systems used.
  
  
  
  European primary care paediatricians, paediatric subspecialists and family doctors were invited by European Academy of Paediatrics Research in Ambulatory Setting Network (EAPRASnet) country coordinators to complete a web-based survey on the use of EHRs and the systems' functionalities. Binomial logistic analysis has been used to evaluate the effect of specialty and type of practice on the use of EHRs.
  
  
  
  The survey was completed by 679 child primary healthcare providers (response rate 53%). Five hundred and fifty four responses coming from 10 predominant countries were taken for further analysis. EHR use by respondents varied widely between countries, all electronic type use ranging between 7% and 97%. There was no significant difference in EHR use between group practice and solo practitioners, or between family doctors and primary care paediatricians. History and physical examination can be properly recorded by respondents in most countries. However, growth chart plotting capacity in some countries ranges between 22% and 50%. Vaccination recording capacity varies between 50% and 100%, and data exchange capacity with immunization databases is mostly limited, ranging between 0% and 54%.
  
  
  
  There is marked heterogeneity in the use and functionalities of EHRs used among child primary child healthcare providers in Europe. More importantly, lack of critical paediatric supportive functionalities like growth tracking and vaccination status has been documented in some countries. There is a need to explore the reasons for these findings, and to develop a cross European paediatric EHR standards.
authors.affiliation: Maccabi Health Services, Tel Aviv, Israel. zgrosman@netvision.net.il.
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Grossman
authors.affiliation: Pediatra di Famiglia ULSS 16, Padova, Italy.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Del Torso
authors.affiliation: Primary Care Health Centre 'Pare Claret', Catalan Institute of Health, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: van Esso
authors.affiliation: Children's Hospital, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.
authors.forename: J H H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Ehrich
authors.affiliation: Tóth Ilona Healthcare Center H-1212 Budapest, Budapest, Hungary.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Altorjai
authors.affiliation: Medical Faculty, University of Rzeszów, Rzeszów, Poland.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mazur
authors.affiliation: Kinderaerzte KurWerk, Burgdorf, Switzerland.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wyder
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, Santa Maria Hospital, Lisbon, Portugal.
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Neves
authors.affiliation: Graz, Austria.
authors.forename: H J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Dornbusch
authors.affiliation: Paediatric Primary Care Office, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Jaeger Roman
authors.affiliation: Pediatra di Famiglia USLUMBRIA 1, Perugia, Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Santucci
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, Larnaca General Hospital, European University Cyprus, Engomi, Cyprus.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hadjipanayis
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D002662:Child Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D057286:Electronic Health Records / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005060:Europe; D005194:Family Practice / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006302:Health Services Research / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011364:Professional Practice / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
keywords: Europe; child primary care; electronic health record; growth; vaccination