The successful implementation of electronic health records at small rural hospitals.

摘要

Electronic health records (EHRs) have been in use since the 1960s. U.S. rural hospital leaders and administrators face significant pressure to implement health information technology because of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. However, some leaders and managers of small rural hospital lack strategies to develop and implement EHRs. The focus of this descriptive phenomenological study was to explore lived experiences of hospital leaders and administrators who have used successful strategies to implement EHRs in small rural hospitals. Diffusion of innovation theory shaped the theoretical framework of this study. Data were collected through telephone interviews conducted with participants who successfully deployed EHRs at 10 hospitals in the Appalachian regions of Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia. Data analysis occurred using a modified Husserlian approach in search of common themes from interview transcripts. The main themes were strategies to address standards and incentives, implementation, and challenges. The exploration of these strategies provides insight that small rural hospital leaders and administrators could consider for implementing EHRs. The study findings might enable small rural hospital leaders and administrators to contribute to positive social change by engaging communities in using EHRs; these findings may also expand information sharing among individuals and organizations and build social relationships with an expectation of future benefits. Results from this study are designed to inform other small rural hospital leaders and administrators to conduct further research on successful strategies for implementation of EHRs.