Electronic medical records

Barriers to acceptance by doctors

Abstract

Implementation of electronic medical records (EMRs) in the health system constitutes a process of technological change. Substituting paper for electronic medical records implies the medical record is no longer the registration of information with a great sense of ownership by thy the physician and the institution, and it also brings in the integration of information, team work, multidisciplinariety , rules and norms that are not  your own, widely distributed Access to it for different legal and legitimate purposes.
This study aims to identify the factors that may result in doctors being against the use of EMRs in a health care institution. We conducted a qualitative research by means of semi-structured interviews and intentionally defined a sample.  The global anslysis of the interviews reveals the combination of different factors for resistance in each one of the professionals, the most well known being: interferences in the doctor–patient relationship, the greater demand of time at the start, fear of the unknown, inadequacy of the work system and interests of the health professionals.
Likewise, different kinds of technology users are identified: some have embraced it, others are obliged users and other choose not to use it.
In conclusion, some of the barriers may be directly modified from the project management, as for instance, the possibility of using the software available, or  the impact of time. However, there are other barriers that imply changes in the behaviour of medical professionals that are usually connected to their values and beliefs, what makes interventions seeking change more complex.