Using Electronic Medical Records for HIV Care in Rural Rwanda.
Partners In Health implemented an electronic medical record in 2005 to support and improve HIV and TB patient care
Abstract
Partners In Health (PIH) implemented an electronic medical record (EMR) system in Rwanda in 2005 to support and improve HIV and TB patient care. The system holds detailed patient records, accessible to clinicians through printed reports or directly via a computer in the consultation rooms. Ongoing assessment of data quality and clinical data use has led multiple interventions to be put in place. One such evaluation cycle led to the implementation of a system which identified 15 previously undiagnosed pediatric patients with HIV. Another cycle led to an EMR intervention which helped to decrease the proportion of completed critical CD4 lab results that did not reach clinicians by 34.2% (p=.002). Additionally an automated data quality improvement system reduced known errors by 92% by providing local data officers a tool and training to allow them to easily access and correct data errors. Electronic systems can be used to support care in rural resource-poor settings, and frequent assessment of data quality and clinical use of data can be used to support that goal.
Citation
Amoroso, C. L.; Akimana, B.; Wise, B.; Fraser, H.S. F. Using Electronic Medical Records for HIV Care in Rural Rwanda. In: Safran, C., Reti, S., Marin, H.F. (Eds) MEDINFO 2010 - Proceedings of the 13th World Congress on Medical Informatics. IOS Press, Lansdale, USA (2010) 337-341. ISBN 978-1-60750-587-7 Studies in Health Technology and Informatics Vol 106 [doi:10.3233/978-1-60750-588-4-337]
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Using Electronic Medical Records for HIV Care in Rural Rwanda.