ADOPTION AND USAGE OF ELECTRONIC MEDICAL RECORDS IN CANADIAN FAMILY PRACTICE: ARE SMALL PRACTICES AT A DISADVANTAGE?

Abstract

<p>Canadian primary care practices lag behind their counterparts in the United States and Europe in adopting Electronic Medical Record (EMR) systems to facilitate care. Although there is a considerable volume of cross-national conceptual literature focused on system design and barriers to adoption, there is little in the way of research on the unique problems faced by Canadian physicians within the publicly financed and privately provided system of healthcare delivery. This study uses a survey of Canadian physicians to investigate differences in perceptions of EMR value between two groups who have implemented these systems: “small practice” physicians, i.e. those with a maximum of 2 full-time physicians and “large practice” physicians, or those with three or more full-time physicians. A Mann-Whitney U Test conducted on survey item responses of the two groups finds that “small practice” physicians feel significantly less positive about EMRs with regards to ease of use, time savings and effective patient management.</p>