User Manuals for a Primary Care Electronic Medical Record System: A Mixed Methods Study of User- and Vendor-Generated Documents.

RESEARCH PROBLEM: Tutorials and user manuals are important forms of impersonal support for using software applications including electronic medical records (EMRs). Differences between user- and vendor documentation may indicate support needs, which are not sufficiently addressed by the official documentation, and reveal new elements that may inform the design of tutorials and user manuals. RESEARCH QUESTION: What are the differences between user-generated tutorials and manuals for an EMR and the official user manual from the software vendor? LITERATURE REVIEW: Effective design of tutorials and user manuals requires careful packaging of information, balance between declarative and procedural texts, an action and task-oriented approach, support for error recognition and recovery, and effective use of visual elements. No previous research compared these elements between formal and informal documents. METHODOLOGY: We conducted an mixed methods study. Seven tutorials and two manuals for an EMR were collected from three family health teams and compared with the official user manual from the software vendor. Documents were qualitatively analyzed using a framework analysis approach in relation to the principles of technical documentation described above. Subsets of the data were quantitatively analyzed using cross-tabulation to compare the types of error information and visual cues in screen captures between user- and vendor-generated manuals. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The user-developed tutorials and manuals differed from the vendor-developed manual in that they contained mostly procedural and not declarative information; were customized to the specific workflow, user roles, and patient characteristics; contained more error information related to work processes than to software usage; and used explicit visual cues on screen captures to help users identify window elements. These findings imply that to support EMR implementation, tutorials and manuals need to be customized and adapted to specific organizational contexts and workflows. The main limitation of the study is its generalizability. Future research should address this limitation and may explore alternative approaches to software documentation, such as modular manuals or participatory design.

Social networks and secondary health conditions: the critical secondary team for individuals with spinal cord injury.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the structure of informal networks for individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) living in the community, to understand the quality of relationship of informal networks, and to understand the role of informal networks in the prevention and management of secondary health conditions (SHCs). DESIGN: Mixed-method descriptive study. SETTING: Ontario, Canada Participants: Community-dwelling adults with an SCI living in Ontario Interventions/methods: The Arizona Social Support Interview Survey was used to measure social networks. Participants were asked the following open-ended questions: (1) What have been your experiences with your health care in the community? (2) What have been your experiences with care related to prevention and/or management of SHCs?, (3)What has been the role of your informal social networks (friends/family) related to SHCs? RESULTS: Fourteen key informant interviews were conducted (6 men, 8 women). The overall median for available informal networks was 11.0 persons (range 3-19). The informal network engaged in the following roles: (1) advice/validating concerns; (2) knowledge brokers; (3) advocacy; (4) preventing SHCs; (5) assisting with finances; and (6) managing SHCs. Participants described their informal networks as a "secondary team"; a critical and essential force in dealing with SHCs. CONCLUSIONS: While networks are smaller for persons with SCI compared with the general population, these ties seems to be strong, which is essential when the roles involve a level of trust, certainty, tacit knowledge, and flexibility. These informal networks serve as essential key players in filling the gaps that exist within the formal health care system.

End-user support for a primary care electronic medical record: a qualitative case study of a vendor's perspective.

BACKGROUND: In primary care settings, users often rely on vendors to provide support for health information technology (HIT). Yet, little is known about the vendors' perspectives on the support they provide, how support personnel perceive their roles, the challenges they face and the ways they deal with them. OBJECTIVE: To provide in-depth insight into an electronic medical record (EMR) vendor's perspective on end-user support. METHODS: As part of a larger case study research, we conducted nine semi-structured interviews with help desk staff, trainers and service managers of an EMR vendor, and observed two training sessions of a new client. RESULTS: With a growing client base, the vendor faced challenges of support staff shortage and high variance in users' technical knowledge. Additionally, users sometimes needed assistance with infrastructure, and not just software problems. These challenges sometimes hindered the provision of timely support and required supporters to possess good interpersonal skills and adapt to diverse client population. CONCLUSION: This study highlights the complexity of providing end-user support for HIT. With increased adoption, other vendors are likely to face similar challenges. To deal with these issues, supporters need not only strong technical knowledge of the systems, but also good interpersonal communication skills. Some responsibilities may be delegated to super-users. Users may find it useful to hire local IT staff, at least on an on-call basis, to provide assistance with infrastructure problems, which are not supported by the software vendor. Vendors may consider expanding their service packages to cover these elements.

The importance of employment status in determining exit rates from nursing.

To mitigate nurse shortages, health care decision makers tend to employ retention strategies that assume nurses employed in full-time, part-time, or casual positions and working in different sectors have similar preferences for work. However, this assumption has not been validated in the literature. The relationship between a nurse's propensity to exit the nurse profession in Ontario and employment status was explored by building an extended Cox Proportional Hazards Regression Model using a counting process technique. The differential exit patterns between part-time and casual nurses suggest that the common practice of treating part-time and casual nurses as equivalent is misleading. Health care decision makers should consider nurse retention strategies specifically targeting casual nurses because this segment of the profession is at the greatest risk of leaving. Nurse executives and nurse managers should investigate the different work preferences of part-time and casual nurses to devise tailored rather than "one-size fits all" nurse retention strategies to retain casual nurses.

Understanding end-user support for health information technology: a theoretical framework.

BACKGROUND: Support is often considered an important factor for successful implementation and realising the benefits of health information technology (HIT); however, there is a dearth of research on support and theoretical frameworks to characterise it. OBJECTIVE: To develop and present a comprehensive, holistic, framework for characterising enduser support that can be applied to various settings and types of information systems. METHOD: Scoping review of the medical informatics and information systems literature. RESULTS: A theoretical framework of end-user support is presented. It includes the following facets: support source, location of support, support activities, and perceived characteristics of support and support personnel. CONCLUSION: The proposed framework may be a useful tool for describing and characterising enduser support for HIT. it may also be used by decision makers and implementation leaders for planning purposes.

Accelerating the workplace health agenda.

Lowe and Chan's proposal for the development of common work environment metrics is long overdue. The authors' healthy work environment (HWE) framework is evidence based and illustrates the relationships between HWEs and organizational-level outcomes in a succinct yet comprehensive manner. The challenges we face in implementing their framework are related not so much to a fear of change but to a willingness to engage with multiple stakeholders and levels of government in coordinating our efforts. To date, we have lacked, at the policy level, a belief that HWEs can reduce operating costs, improve human resource utilization and, ultimately, lead to higher-quality patient care. We need a framework that will allow us to compare organizational performance in the area of health human resources in the same manner as we compare organizational outcomes in other areas. Such comparisons would allow us to further our understanding of the relationships among care providers, workplaces and organizational outcomes.

Novice nurse information needs in paper and hybrid electronic-paper environments: a qualitative analysis.

A within group, laboratory, experimental study of nurse information seeking was conducted. As a part of the study, 35 novice nurses assessed and planned the care of two patients in two simulation environments: a paper (PR) environment and a hybrid (HY) environment [i.e., part of the environment was made available in electronic form via an electronic patient record (EPR) and part of it was paper-based]. Subjects were asked to "think aloud" in each environment and participated in a cued recall session following participation in the simulations. Subjects' verbalizations and actions were audio and video recorded and then transcribed. In the first phase of the study audio and video data were qualitatively coded using Model Based Coding with concepts from Newcomer Information Seeking Theory (NIST). This paper presents the qualitative results of this study with a focus upon the types of information used by novice nurses during the assessment and planning of patient care. Qualitative findings revealed novice nurses used referent, relational and appraisal information (as predicted by NIST theory and research) including information composed of more than one type of information (e.g., referent-relational). Two new types of information emerged from the qualitative data - situational task and situational organization information.

Sustaining change: once evidence-based practices are transferred, what then?

Healthcare has undergone many transformations over the past several decades including increased diagnostic sophistication, shorter in-hospital stays and day surgeries as well as greater home-based treatments such as intravenous therapy, dialysis and palliation. Despite their rigorous evidence-based underpinnings and the demonstrated benefits of these advances, the sustainability of new clinical practices in healthcare organizations continues to present a challenge to practitioners and researchers alike.

The efficiency and effectiveness of utilizing diagrams in interviews: an assessment of participatory diagramming and graphic elicitation.

BACKGROUND: This paper focuses on measuring the efficiency and effectiveness of two diagramming methods employed in key informant interviews with clinicians and health care administrators. The two methods are 'participatory diagramming', where the respondent creates a diagram that assists in their communication of answers, and 'graphic elicitation', where a researcher-prepared diagram is used to stimulate data collection. METHODS: These two diagramming methods were applied in key informant interviews and their value in efficiently and effectively gathering data was assessed based on quantitative measures and qualitative observations. RESULTS: Assessment of the two diagramming methods suggests that participatory diagramming is an efficient method for collecting data in graphic form, but may not generate the depth of verbal response that many qualitative researchers seek. In contrast, graphic elicitation was more intuitive, better understood and preferred by most respondents, and often provided more contemplative verbal responses, however this was achieved at the expense of more interview time. CONCLUSION: Diagramming methods are important for eliciting interview data that are often difficult to obtain through traditional verbal exchanges. Subject to the methodological limitations of the study, our findings suggest that while participatory diagramming and graphic elicitation have specific strengths and weaknesses, their combined use can provide complementary information that would not likely occur with the application of only one diagramming method. The methodological insights gained by examining the efficiency and effectiveness of these diagramming methods in our study should be helpful to other researchers considering their incorporation into qualitative research designs.

Barriers to patient involvement in health service planning and evaluation: an exploratory study.

OBJECTIVE: Patient involvement in health service planning and evaluation is considered important yet not widely practiced. This study explored stakeholder beliefs about patient participation in performance indicator selection to better understand hypothesized barriers. METHODS: Interviews with 30 cancer patients and health professionals from two teaching hospitals were analyzed qualitatively. RESULTS: All groups believed patients, not members of the public, should be involved in the selection of indicators. Ongoing, interactive methods such as committee involvement, rather than single, passive efforts such as surveys were preferred. Health professionals recommended patients assume a consultative, rather than decision-making role. Older patients agreed with this. CONCLUSION: Variable patient interest, health professional attitudes, and a lack of insight on appropriate methods may be limiting patient involvement in this, and other service planning and evaluation activities. More research is required to validate expressed views among the populations these stakeholders represent, and to establish effective methods for engaging patients. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Efforts to encourage a change in health professional attitude may be required, along with dedicated organizational resources, coordinators and training. Methods to engage patients should involve deliberation, which can be achieved through modified Delphi panel or participatory research approaches.

Fostering knowledge exchange between researchers and decision-makers: exploring the effectiveness of a mixed-methods approach.

OBJECTIVES: Knowledge exchange is thought to enhance research utilization by decision-makers but there is little guidance on appropriate methods. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a research planning exercise utilizing technical (ranking, rating) and interpretive strategies (interdisciplinary workshop deliberation). METHODS: Participants were surveyed to establish research priorities and professional roles. Observation was used to examine actual contribution and outcomes. Semi-structured interviews with participants elicited perceived outcomes, commitment, contribution and learning. Survey data was reported with summary statistics. Transcripts were analyzed qualitatively. RESULTS: Stakeholders were satisfied with the overall process, gaps in research were prioritized, and research questions were proposed, but anticipated intermediate or lateral outcomes were not achieved. Identifying differing perspectives and establishing relationships were unanticipated outcomes. Barriers included group dynamics, lack of clarity on objectives and processes, and minimal experience or interest in interpretive activities. CONCLUSIONS: A conceptual framework for evaluating factors influencing knowledge exchange outcomes had not been previously investigated. Strategies for overcoming identified barriers include better facilitation, involving a critical volume of non-clinicians, in-person sharing of background information, and incentives for decision-makers. Further research is required to examine the effectiveness of different forms of knowledge exchange, and the degree to which they are currently being practiced.

Stakeholder preferences for cancer care performance indicators.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this paper is to show that performance data use could be promoted with a better understanding of the type of indicators that are important to different stakeholders. This study explored patient, nurse, physician and manager preferences for cancer care quality indicators. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: Interviews were held with 30 stakeholders between March and June 2004. They were asked to describe how they would use a cancer "report card", and which indicators they would want reported. Transcripts were reviewed using qualitative analysis. FINDINGS: Role (patient, nurse, physician, manager) influenced preferences and perceived use of performance data. Patients and physicians were more skeptical than nurses and managers; patients and managers expressed some preferences distinct from nurses and physicians; and patients and nurses interpreted indicators more broadly than physicians and managers. All groups preferred technical process over outcome or interpersonal process indicators. RESEARCH LIMITATIONS/IMPLICATIONS: Expressed views are not directly applicable beyond this setting, or to the general public but findings are congruent with attitudes to performance data for other conditions, and serve as a conceptual basis for further study. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: Strategies for maximizing the relevance of performance reports might include technical process indicators, selection by multi-stakeholder deliberation, information that facilitates information application and customizable report interfaces. ORIGINALITY/VALUE: Performance data preferences have not been thoroughly examined, particularly in the context of cancer care. Factors were identified that influence stakeholder views of performance data, and this framework could be used to confirm findings among larger and different populations.

Perceptions of the process of care among caregivers and care recipients in dementia care networks.

The Dementia Care Networks Study investigated 4 community-based, not-for-profit dementia care networks in Ontario, Canada. Investigators examined whether sociodemographic and health characteristics, type of support network, and amount of service use among care recipients and caregivers (n = 267 dyads) were associated with experiences with care processes. The process-of-care constructs were: family physicians' awareness of services; experiences with health care workers, and assessment and placement activities. The findings highlighted that family physicians' understanding of dementia and their ability to work with the dyad to become aware of and accept services, was an important component in the dyad's satisfaction. If caregivers received home support and the care recipients received emotional support from their social support network, they were more likely to be satisfied with their experiences with health care workers. In summary, increased awareness and provision of services were associated with more positive perceptions of network effectiveness.

What do we know about health care team effectiveness? A review of the literature.

This review of health care team effectiveness literature from 1985 to 2004 distinguishes among intervention studies that compare team with usual (nonteam) care; intervention studies that examine the impact of team redesign on team effectiveness; and field studies that explore relationships between team context, structure, processes, and outcomes. The authors use an Integrated Team Effectiveness Model (ITEM) to summarize research findings and to identify gaps in the literature. Their analysis suggests that the type and diversity of clinical expertise involved in team decision making largely accounts for improvements in patient care and organizational effectiveness. Collaboration, conflict resolution, participation, and cohesion are most likely to influence staff satisfaction and perceived team effectiveness. The studies examined here underscore the importance of considering the contexts in which teams are embedded. The ITEM provides a useful framework for conceptualizing relationships between multiple dimensions of team context, structure, processes, and outcomes.

The impact of context on evidence utilization: a framework for expert groups developing health policy recommendations.

Should the same evidence lead to the same decision outcomes in different decision-making contexts? In order to improve comprehension of this issue, this study considers how context influences evidence utilization in the development of health policy recommendations. We used an embedded multiple case study design to study how four expert groups formulated policy recommendations for breast, cervical, colorectal, and prostate cancer screening in Ontario, Canada. We interviewed expert group members and analysed meeting agendas/minutes, interim/final reports and other case-related documents. Our analyses revealed varying policy objectives; the use, neglect, or overextended consideration of three key decision support tools; the varying skills/abilities of expert group members in using different decision support tools; the varying impact of effect modifiers, resource constraints and political interests; and the differing development/consideration of context-specific evidence to address uncertainty in the external decision-making context. While more work is needed to determine if these findings are generalizable beyond cancer screening policy, we believe the central challenge for evidence-based policy is not to develop international evidence, but rather to develop more systematic, rigorous, and global methods for identifying, interpreting, and applying evidence in different decision-making contexts. Our analyses suggest that identification of evidence must distinguish between different policy objectives in order to link a broad conceptualization of evidence to appropriate policy questions. Interpretation of evidence must acknowledge the varying nature of evidence for different policy objectives, balancing existing emphasis on evidentiary quality with more sophisticated methods for assessing the generalizability of evidence. The application of evidence must also acknowledge different policy objectives, appropriately employing rule-based grading schemes and agreement-based consensus methods that are sensitive to the nature of the evidence and contexts involved.

Understanding the conditions that lead to effective health services delivery networks.

This commentary addresses four of the paradoxes proposed by Huerta et al.--resourcing, synergy, defragmentation and evaluation--and uses recent evidence from the Ontario Regional Stroke Strategy and the Dementia Care Networks Study to explore the challenges identified in greater depth. Seven strategies are also proposed to advance the practice and research agendas related to network development and evaluation: developing a shared vision of care for particular groups of care recipients/clients, products and services that goes beyond a single sector (e.g., acute care only); identifying the aspects of care that will most likely benefit from a network structure; embedding networks within broader strategies; developing both clinical and management leadership and collaborations at the organizational and network levels; developing mechanisms to understand care-recipient flow and where gains can be achieved through interactions of key organizations and service providers; using administrative and information mechanisms to increase efficiencies within networks; and acknowledging that, even with a centralized strategy, variations will exist between similar networks.

Evaluating the effectiveness of community-based dementia care networks: the Dementia Care Networks' Study.

PURPOSE: The Dementia Care Networks' Study examined the effectiveness of four community-based, not-for-profit dementia networks. The study involved assessing the relationship between the types of administrative and service-delivery exchanges that occurred among the networked agencies and the network members' perception of the effectiveness of these exchanges. DESIGN AND METHODS: With the use of a case-study method, the evolution, structure, and processes of each network were documented. Social network analysis using a standardized questionnaire completed by member agencies identified patterns of administrative and clinical exchanges among networked agencies. RESULTS: Differences were found between the four networks in terms of their perceptions of service-delivery effectiveness; perceptions of administrative effectiveness did not factor significantly. Exchanges between groups of agencies (cliques) within each of the four networks were found to be more critical than those between individual agencies within each network. IMPLICATIONS: Integration-measured by the types of exchanges within as opposed to across networks-differentiated the four networks studied. This research contributes to our understanding of the use of multiple measures to evaluate the inner workings of service delivery and their impact on elder health and elder health care.

Consensus guidelines on analgesia and sedation in dying intensive care unit patients.

BACKGROUND: Intensivists must provide enough analgesia and sedation to ensure dying patients receive good palliative care. However, if it is perceived that too much is given, they risk prosecution for committing euthanasia. The goal of this study is to develop consensus guidelines on analgesia and sedation in dying intensive care unit patients that help distinguish palliative care from euthanasia. METHODS: Using the Delphi technique, panelists rated levels of agreement with statements describing how analgesics and sedatives should be given to dying ICU patients and how palliative care should be distinguished from euthanasia. Participants were drawn from 3 panels: 1) Canadian Academic Adult Intensive Care Fellowship program directors and Intensive Care division chiefs (N = 9); 2) Deputy chief provincial coroners (N = 5); 3) Validation panel of Intensivists attending the Canadian Critical Care Trials Group meeting (N = 12). RESULTS: After three Delphi rounds, consensus was achieved on 16 statements encompassing the role of palliative care in the intensive care unit, the management of pain and suffering, current areas of controversy, and ways of improving palliative care in the ICU. CONCLUSION: Consensus guidelines were developed to guide the administration of analgesics and sedatives to dying ICU patients and to help distinguish palliative care from euthanasia.

The impact of policy changes on the health of recent immigrants and refugees in the inner city. A qualitative study of service providers' perspectives.

BACKGROUND: Dramatic changes to health and social policy have taken place in Ontario over the last five years with few attempts to measure their impact on health outcomes. This study explored service providers' opinions about the impact of four major policy changes on the health of recent immigrant and refugee communities in Toronto's inner city. METHODS: Semi-structured key informant interviews. RESULTS: Reductions in funding for welfare, hospitals and community agencies were seen to have had major effects on the health of newcomers. Emergent themes included erosion of the social determinants of health, reduced access to health care, increased need for advocacy, deterioration in mental health, and an increase in wife abuse. CONCLUSIONS: Several areas were identified where policy changes were perceived to have had a negative impact on the health of recent immigrants and refugees. This study provides insights for policy-makers, inner-city planners and researchers conducting population-based studies of immigrant health.