Alzghaibi Haitham, Hutchings Hayley
Department of Health Informatics, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Qassim University, Buraydah, Saudi Arabia.
Swansea University, Medical School, Swansea, United Kingdom.
Front Med (Lausanne). 2025 Jun 16;12:1502184. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2025.1502184. eCollection 2025.
The Saudi government has allocated four billion Saudi Riyals (approximately $1,066 million) to establish the National Electronic Health Record (NEHR) and advance its e-health strategy. Over seventy projects have been identified to achieve this vision. Following the failure of previous initiatives, the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Saudi Arabia is prioritizing the implementation of Electronic Health Record Systems (EHRS) in all Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs). This study evaluates the implementation of EHRS in PHCs at two phases: pre-implementation and post-implementation.
A quantitative, self-reported questionnaire was employed at two distinct timescales (pre- and post-implementation) to assess user attitudes and experiences. The study population included all clinical and administrative staff working in Saudi PHCs ( = 38,514). A multi-stage cluster sampling technique was used, resulting in data from total 834 participants in both pre and post implementation phases.
Participants demonstrated a high level of awareness regarding the perceived usefulness of EHRS during the pre-implementation phase. In the post-implementation phase, agreement toward EHRS usefulness increased, with 96.6% of participants endorsing the system's implementation. However, dissatisfaction emerged regarding training and technical support mechanisms. Negative attitudes were also expressed, particularly regarding the time required to assist less experienced users. Variability in user attitudes was observed across scales measuring perceived usefulness, training and support, and negative attitudes. These findings highlight evolving perceptions influenced by direct system use and organizational support.
End-user attitudes toward EHRS implementation vary over time and are influenced by system usability, organizational support, and the scale of the project. Addressing training deficiencies, improving technical support, and involving end-users in the implementation process are critical to fostering positive attitudes and ensuring successful EHRS adoption in PHCs.
沙特政府已拨款40亿沙特里亚尔（约合1.066亿美元）用于建立国家电子健康记录（NEHR）并推进其电子健康战略。为实现这一愿景，已确定了70多个项目。在先前的举措失败后，沙特阿拉伯卫生部（MoH）将在所有初级医疗保健中心（PHC）实施电子健康记录系统（EHRS）作为优先事项。本研究分两个阶段评估了PHC中EHRS的实施情况：实施前和实施后。
在两个不同的时间尺度（实施前和实施后）采用定量的自我报告问卷来评估用户态度和体验。研究人群包括在沙特PHC工作的所有临床和行政人员（n = 38,514）。使用了多阶段整群抽样技术，在实施前和实施后阶段共获得了834名参与者的数据。
在实施前阶段，参与者对EHRS的感知有用性表现出高度的认识。在实施后阶段，对EHRS有用性的认同有所增加，96.6%的参与者认可该系统的实施。然而，对培训和技术支持机制出现了不满。也表达了负面态度，特别是关于协助经验较少用户所需的时间。在衡量感知有用性、培训和支持以及负面态度的量表上观察到用户态度的差异。这些发现突出了受直接系统使用和组织支持影响的不断变化的看法。
最终用户对EHRS实施的态度随时间而变化，并受到系统可用性、组织支持和项目规模的影响。解决培训不足、改善技术支持并让最终用户参与实施过程对于培养积极态度并确保PHC成功采用EHRS至关重要。
