ReviewInternational journal of health sciences
Why sub-Saharan Africa lags in electronic health record adoption and possible strategies to increase its adoption in this region.
Review in International journal of health sciences. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 80 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
80 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Availability of published evidence on coverage, cost components, and funding support for digitalisation of infectious disease surveillance in Africa, 2003-2022: a systematic review.BMC public health · 2024Pooled it
- Mapping the regulatory landscape of AI in healthcare in Africa.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2023Pooled it
- Quality and women's satisfaction with maternal referral practices in sub-Saharan African low and lower-middle income countries: a systematic review.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2020Pooled it
- The adoption of electronic medical record by physicians: A PRISMA-compliant systematic review.Medicine · 2020Pooled it
- Trial
- Perceived value but persistent barriers: A qualitative study of healthcare worker experiences with the Impilo electronic health record system in rural Zimbabwe.PLOS digital health · 2026Article
- End-user perspectives on design and implementation of a novel SkinScan3D (SS3D) device for monitoring Kaposi Sarcoma in East Africa: a qualitative study.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2026Article
- Utilisation of electronic health record systems in clinical nursing practice in Ghana: predictors, benefits, and challenges.BMC nursing · 2026Article
- Electronic Medical Record Attitudes and Predictors of Adoption Among Ethiopian Health Professionals: Cross-Sectional Study.JMIR formative research · 2026Article
- Factors associated with digital tools use among primary healthcare professionals in Burkina Faso: a cross-sectional study of the minimal digital ecosystem.BMC health services research · 2026Article
- Sieving for gold: external comparator studies to prioritize drugs for late-stage clinical trial.Journal of comparative effectiveness research · 2026Review
- How does national power promote the improvement of the application level of electronic medical record.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Digital health interventions in strengthening primary healthcare systems in Sub-Saharan Africa: Insights from Ethiopia, Ghana, and Zimbabwe.PLOS digital health · 2026Article
- Using a novel hybrid AI-based paper-to-digital pipeline for extracting patient-level clinical data from routine hospital records in Kenya: a retrospective multicentre study.BMJ digital health & AI · 2026Article
- Assessing organisational and technological readiness for artificial intelligence implementation in the Ghana health service: a systematic review protocol.Frontiers in digital health · 2026Article
- Acceptance of Electronic Medical Records and Associated Factors Among Health Care Workers in Northwest Ethiopia: Cross-Sectional Study.JMIR medical informatics · 2025Article
- Healthcare provider and health system leader perspectives on barriers to hypertension care in Malawi: insights from integrated and non-integrated HIV care settings.Global health action · 2025Article
- Electronic medical record (EMR) pre-deployment assessment for adoption readiness, acceptability, and associated factors at Hiwot Fana comprehensive specialized university hospital.BMC medical informatics and decision making · 2025Article
- Assessing Internet Quality Across Public Health Centers in Indonesia: Cross-Sectional Evaluation Study.JMIR medical informatics · 2025Article
- Understanding Health Information Systems Utilization Across Public Health Centers in Indonesia: Cross-Sectional Study.JMIR medical informatics · 2025Article
20 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Poor health information system has been identified as a major challenge in the health-care system in many developing countries including sub-Saharan African countries. Electronic health record (EHR) has been shown as an important tool to improve access to patient information with attendance improved quality of care. However, EHR has not been widely implemented/adopted in sub-Saharan Africa. This study sought to identify factors that affect the adoption of an EHR in sub-Saharan Africa and strategies to improve its adoption in this region. A comprehensive literature search was conducted on three electronic databases: PubMed, Medline, and Google Scholar. Articles of interest were those published in English that contained information on factors that limit the adoption of an EHR as well as strategies that improve its adoption in sub-Saharan African countries. The available evidence indicated that there were many factors that hindered the widespread adoption of an EHR in sub-Saharan Africa. These were high costs of procurement and maintenance of the EHR system, lack of financial incentives and priorities, poor electricity supply and internet connectivity, and primary user's limited computer skills. However, strategies such as implementation planning, financial supports, appropriate EHR system selection, training of primary users, and the adoption of the phased implementation process have been identified to facilitate the use of an EHR. Wide adoption of an EHR in sub-Saharan Africa region requires a lot more effort than what is assumed because of the current poor level of technological development, lack of required computer skills, and limited resources.
Indexed as
Identifiers
29085270PMC5654179What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.