Factors in Physician Expectations of a Forthcoming Electronic Health Record Implementation

Current emphasis on the computerization of healthcare makes research on physician technology acceptance increasingly important. By understanding factors in physician acceptance and use of information technology, administrators may be able to increase the value of systems in their organizations. The objective of this study was to examine the effect of physician characteristics on effort expectancy and performance expectancy in the context of forthcoming EHR. This was achieved through a survey of 256 physicians in an academic medical group practice just before the implementation of a vendor-based EHR. Openness to change in clinical practice and being a male were positively related to effort expectancy and performance expectancy. Age and computer self-efficacy had negative and positive associations with effort expectancy respectively. These results contribute to the growing literature on technology acceptance in healthcare and highlight some specific physician characteristics that administrators may be able to leverage when managing EHR implementations.