Factors influencing healthcare professionals’ perception towards EHR/EMR systems in gulf cooperation council countries: A systematic review

Electronic health and medical records are widely adopted in many healthcare settings around the world to improve the quality of care. The users’ perception is a significant factor influencing the successful implementation and use of e-health technologies. The aim of this systematic review was to identify factors influencing the perceptions of healthcare professionals towards the adoption and use of electronic health and medical record systems to improve the quality of healthcare services in the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council. We identified primary studies evaluating the perception of healthcare professionals towards electronic health record and/or electronic medical record in the Gulf region. Seven electronic databases including Medline, CINAHL, Informit Health Collection, Science Direct, Proquest, PubMed and Scopus were used to search for the relevant articles published between January 2007 and December 2016. Thirteen articles met the inclusion criteria and were included in this systematic review. Both individual and system-related factors were found to positively or negatively influence the perceptions of healthcare providers towards the systems. Understanding the impact of healthcare professionals’ perception of health information technology is important for policymakers involved in the implementation programs to ensure their success. Future studies should evaluate other individual characteristics such as age, gender and profession of the healthcare providers on their perceptions towards the e-health technologies.