Usability of clinical software systems for the EMR is “one of the major factors, and possibly the most important factor hindering wide-spread adoption,” according to a white paper published by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (Chicago) EHR Usability Task Force.
The paper, entitled Defining and Testing EMR Usability: Principles and Proposed Methods of EMR Usability Evaluation and Rating, asserts that usability principles and methods offer benefits for certification organizations “to test and rate products for usability.” Authored by Jeff Belden, M.D., Rebecca Grayson and Janey Barnes, Ph.D., the paper also describes and defines usability as it pertains to the EMR; identifies a set of well-established principles of usability and design; and offers potential methods of assessing and rating EMR usability, according to HIMSS.
