Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36925860›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in health services2022

Implementing electronic health records on a medical service trip improves the patient care process.

Harm Maarsingh, Kayla Oyler, Gamukama Tuhaise, Mariette Sourial, Adwoa O Nornoo, Wambazu Moses, Laura A Rhodes

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In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in health services, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Harm MaarsinghDepartment of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Lloyd L. Gregory School of Pharmacy, Palm Beach Atlantic University, West Palm Beach, FL, United States.
Kayla OylerDepartment of Pharmacy Practice, Lloyd L. Gregory School of Pharmacy, Palm Beach Atlantic University, West Palm Beach, FL, United States.
Gamukama TuhaiseDepartment of Surgery, Kabale Regional Referral Hospital, Kabale, Uganda.
Mariette SourialDepartment of Pharmacy Practice, Lloyd L. Gregory School of Pharmacy, Palm Beach Atlantic University, West Palm Beach, FL, United States.
Adwoa O NornooDepartment of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Lloyd L. Gregory School of Pharmacy, Palm Beach Atlantic University, West Palm Beach, FL, United States.
Wambazu MosesKabwohe Clinical Research Centre, Bushenyi, Uganda.
Laura A RhodesDepartment of Pharmacy Practice, Lloyd L. Gregory School of Pharmacy, Palm Beach Atlantic University, West Palm Beach, FL, United States.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: The efficiency of the patient care process of short-term medical service trips is often not assessed. The Gregory School of Pharmacy has organized annual medical camps in rural Uganda, however, the paper health records used for documentation and communication between stations have shown several limitations that hinder an optimal patient care process. Therefore, our objective was to implement an electronic health record system in these medical camps to improve the workflow and optimize the patient care process. Methods: An electronic health record system that functioned over a battery-operated local area network was developed and implemented. Patient health information was entered and reviewed at the different stations using mobile devices. The impact of electronic health records (used in 2019) on the patient care process was assessed using the number of patients served per physician per hour and the number of prescriptions filled per hour and comparing these to paper records (used in 2017). Results: Electronic health records were successfully implemented and communication across stations was fluid, thus improving transitions. Importantly, 45% more patients were served per physician per hour and 38% more prescriptions were dispensed per hour when using electronic (2019) compared to paper records (2017), despite having a smaller team in 2019. Conclusion: Implementation of electronic health records in rural Uganda improved the patient care process and the efficiency of the medical camp.

Indexed as

electronic medical records (EMR) systemsmedical campmedical scribepatient care processpharmacyshort-term experiences in global healthshort-term medical missions

Identifiers

PMID36925860
PMCPMC10012798

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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.