Perception and Attitude of Staff Nurses towards Electronic Health Records

A descriptive study was done to assess the perception and attitude of staff nurses towards Electronic Health Records (EHR). The study setting was Sri Ramakrishna Hospital. Using convenient sampling technique, 134 staff nurses were selected for the study. Data was collected using a questionnaire. The questionnaire contained demographic data and questions on the perception of nurses towards EHR. The attitude of nurses was assessed using Modified Stronge and Brodt Attitude scale.

The study findings revealed that, majority (95.5%) of nurses perceived that computerized documentation would certainly be beneficial in the health care setting. 67.9% of nurses perceived that use of EHR will help save time and, 73.1% perceived that electronic documentation will reduce workload of nursing personnel. The assessment of attitude revealed that, majority (91.8%) of nurses had a favorable attitude towards EHR.

There was a positive correlation between attitude and demographic variables such as, the qualification of nurses, nurses' who had completed short term computer courses, and those nurses who had computer as a subject in their basic nursing curriculum.