oa Physician and nurse satisfaction with a newly introduced electronic medical record system at an emergency department of a Qatari Hospital

Introduction: Despite the potential benefits of EMR systems to improve patient care, many attempts at implementing them have failed or met with high levels of user resistance, Implementations that failed have often been those with which the users were dissatisfied with the system.

Aim: The aim of this study is to assess the satisfaction of both the physicians and nurses with the newly introduced EMR system at the Emergency Department of Al Wakra Hospital, to find out if there was a significant difference between physician and nurse's perception to the system. And to determine which of the individual attributes of EMR were related to physician and nurse satisfaction.

Methods: Study design: cross sectional survey four month after of the introduction of the EMR system (Cerner) we surveyed 40 physicians and 96 nurses at the Emergency Department of Al Wakra Hospital. The questionnaire assessed: perceptions regarding EMR ease of use; concerns about impact upon work, and quality of patient care.

Results: The total satisfaction rate was 88.2%. 72.5% among the physicians and 94.5% among the nurses, both physicians and nurses were satisfied with the ease of use of the system, they find it generally to have a positive impact on their work, however both didn't find it to have an impact in reducing ED overcrowding.

Conclusion: Both physicians and nurses were satisfied with the EMR system.