Informed decisions by clinicians are fundamental for EPR implementation.

Abstract

Most often the investment in electronic patient records (EPR) is decided upon on the basis of descriptions of all the advantages this new technology will bring. We argue that an exchange of a paper-based patient record (PPR) with an EPR is an efficient way to automate manual routine work and distribute information but the real benefits from EPR depend on how clinicians use an EPR application to improve the quality of care. We introduce the 'price to pay' concept in order to illustrate that it takes a human effort to create better health care and that clinicians therefore play a very important role when implementing EPR systems.