Authors: Reza Safdari Hussein Dargahi Leila Shahmoradi Ahmadreza Farzaneh Nejad
Publish Date: 2011/07/14
Volume: 36, Issue: 5, Pages: 2787-2793
Abstract
Evaluation of Iran’s HIS hospital Information System ergonomic quality using IsoMetric 9241 part 10 and compared results of that evaluation with results of ergonomic quality evaluation other softwares which evaluated by IsoMetric 9241 part 10 This research study was conducted in two stages In the first stage the researchers evaluated the HIS of 13 hospitals in Iran using ISO 9241 part 10 and in the second stage they compared the evaluation results with the following softwares a ISHmed evaluated by Hamborg et al 2004 b SAPHR evaluated by Gruber 2000 c Microsoft Word for Windows Version 2 evaluated by Gediga et al 1999 For first stage used usability questionnaire called IsoMetrics which is based on the international standard ISO 9241 Part 10 This questionnaire is including 75 items based on the seven principles Data analyzed using SPSS and Excel The comparison between HIS and ISHmed reveal that the former is significantly more usable than the latter in terms of all IsoMetrics sales The HIS also proved to be significantly more applicable than SAPHR in terms of such IsoMetrics scales as “suitability for task” “suitability for learning” “Error tolerance” and “learning ability” However HIS was found to be significantly less usable than Microsoft Word The results of the study show that compared with the mentioned three softwares Iran’s hospital information system enjoys an average ergonomic quality Therefore it is recommended that the users’ comments and expectations be considered more when information systems are designed and developedInformation Systems are increasingly employed in healthcare industry Therefore it is necessary for the designers of information technology and communication systems to assess them continuously 1 However it is impossible to evaluate such systems without first analyzing their users’ understanding of them Moreover users’ satisfaction guarantees the successful implementation of information systems 2Health information systems were presented in early 1970’s 5 Healthcare information systems include data and concepts in health services given to patients to improve the management of such services 6 Hospital information systems have many functions such as patients’ admission transfer and discharge as well as financial and clinical affairs 6 7 8 There are many advantages to health information services the enhancement of medical care quality and reduction of costs and errors Most evaluations performed in this field have focused on the reduction of costs and the improvement of quality 9 Certain studies however have emphasized the technical and social aspects 10Hospital information systems HIS have many advantages they increase the quality of medical care and reduce costs and clinical errors 11 However despite all these benefits information systems have also some problems 12 To recognize and remove such problems it is necessary to evaluate HIS permanently In fact evaluation in an endless process 13 and its results can be used to make decisions regarding the required investments for designing hospital information systems 14There are many articles focusing on the evaluation of health information systems as well as their indicators and outcomes 17 Littlejohns et al 2003 evaluated the integrated computer system in South Africa 18 In their evaluation they focused on optimal education change management and support project management improvement of the link systems maintenance of information confidentiality standardization of processes to manage patients increase of revenue and cost of each service packageUK Health Informatics Institute presents a framework for evaluating health information systems In this framework questions tools techniques and manner of evaluation are provided 19 A system is considered weak if it does not provide its users with proper information For the information system to be successful not only the users’ information needs should be met but the manner of interaction between the system and its users should also be considered
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