Implementing National Electronic Health Records in Nursing Homes in Tyrol: A Nursing Management Perspective

Schaller, Michael; Dornauer, Verena; Hackl, Werner O.; Lechleitner, Georg; &#220;beregger, Marko; Ammenwerth, Elske

doi:10.3233/SHTI200102

Abstract

Background:

Health information technologies as electronic health records (EHR) have the potential to improve the quality and efficiency of health care. Implementing national EHR in nursing homes in Tyrol is a required task within the next years.

Objectives:

To explore and analyze the current situation of information exchange in nursing homes in Tyrol as well as expected potentials and challenges of an ELGA implementation from a nursing management perspective.

Methods:

Semi-structured interviews with nine nursing managers of nursing homes in Tyrol were conducted and analyzed using qualitative content analysis.

Results:

The explorative interviews offered a glance at the actual information exchange with other institutions and at the perception of nursing managers regarding potentials (e.g. decreasing organizational effort) and challenges (e.g. incompleteness of available patient information) of the nationally mandated implementation of ELGA in the nursing homes in Tyrol.

Conclusion:

The interviews with the nine nursing managers of nursing homes in Tyrol revealed some hopes (e.g. the reduction of double documentation) that ELGA will probably not be able to fulfill.