Introduction The healthcare industry is increasingly concerned about medical errors, which are the leading cause of death worldwide and also compromise patient safety. This medical error is even more serious in developing countries where healthcare is not supported by technology. Because of the traditional paper-based prescription system, Ethiopia has an overall medication prescribing error rate of 58.07% that could be avoided if an electronic prescription system was in place. Therefore, this study aims to assess physicians’ perceptions towards electronic prescription implementation. Methods From February 1 to April 5, 2021, an institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted among physicians working in public hospitals in the Amhara region. 384 physicians were selected using a simple random sampling method. The data was collected using a self-administered questionnaire and analysed using SPSS, version 21. To assess factors associated with perception among physicians, a binary and multivariable logistic regression analysis were performed. A P.05 value, at a 95% confidence interval, was considered statistically significant. The validity of the questionnaire was determined based on expert opinion, as well as its reliability was determined by calculating the value of Cronbach alpha (α = .78). Results In this study, 231 (76.5%) of study participants had a positive perception of electronic prescription. Around 70.8% had more than 5 years of computer usage experience. Nearly 90% of participants claimed that their prescriptions were legible; however, 89% believe that paper-based prescriptions are prone to error. According to multivariable logistic regression analysis, technical skill [AOR] 4.7, 95% confidence interval [CI] (1.27–17.41), good internet access (AOR 2.82, % CI 1.75–4.54), and perceived usefulness of e-prescription system (AOR 3.31, 95% CI 1.01–12.12) were significantly associated with perception. Conclusions The majority of respondents have a positive perception of electronic prescription. The most notable factors associated with physician perception were organizational factors, internet access, perceived usefulness of the system, and technical skill.
Background: -Telemedicine is the delivery of healthcare services at a distance. Despite it is an emerging and infancy technology in a developing country, utilizing the technology for delivering healthcare services is low in Ethiopia. To maximize and facilitate Telemedicine adoption it prominently requires information about the knowledge and awareness of telemedicine services among health professionals.Methods: - An institution-based cross-sectional study design was conducted among 423 health professionals working at Amhara Region Referral Hospitals from February 12-March 20/2020. The data were collected using a self-administered structured questionnaire. Desk review was done to assure the data quality and then data was entered into EPI INFO version 7 and exported into SPSS version 20 for statistical analysis. Descriptive statistics, bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were done. The odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval (95% CI) was used to identify associated factors.Result: About 56% of health professionals had good knowledge and 57.4% had high awareness towards telemedicine services with a 411 (97.2%) response rate. Information sharing culture [AOR=3.01, 95% CI: 1.89, 4.80], having IT support staff [AOR=1.87, 95%CI: 1.06, 3.29], internet as information source [AOR=1.80, 95%CI:1.1, 2.94], awareness [AOR=1.35,95% CI: 1.03, 2.40], being male [AOR=1.73,95% CI:1.06, 2.81] were significantly associated with the knowledge of the respondents towards telemedicine services and telemedicine training [AOR= 2.33, 95% CI: 1.15, 4.72] and computer accessibility in their hospitals [AOR= 1.54, 95% CI: 1.01, 2.35] were significantly associated with the awareness of the respondents towards telemedicine services.Conclusion: More than half of the respondents had good knowledge and high awareness of telemedicine services. Information sources, having IT support staff, information sharing culture, gender and awareness were significant factors for the knowledge of telemedicine service, and telemedicine training and computer access were significant factors of awareness of health professionals towards telemedicine services. Therefore Appropriate and regular awareness creation training of telemedicine systems should be given to the health professional.
Background Understanding telemedicine technology is significantly important for the implementation of a telemedicine system in resource-limited areas. Specifically, in Ethiopia, the doctor-to-patient ratio was 0.003. This has made it difficult to access healthcare services remotely. Therefore, to maximize and facilitate telemedicine adoption, it is critical to have information about health professionals’ knowledge and awareness of telemedicine services. This study aimed to determine the Knowledge and Awareness of Health Professionals towards Telemedicine Services in Northwest, Ethiopia. Methods An institution-based cross-sectional study design was conducted among 423 health professionals working at referral hospitals from 12 February to 20 March 2020. Descriptive statistics, bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analysis were done. To identify associated factors, an odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was used. Result With a response rate of 411 (97.2%), approximately 56.4% of professionals had good knowledge and 57.4% had high awareness of telemedicine services. Information sharing culture [AOR = 3.01, 95% CI: 1.89, 4.80], IT support staff [AOR = 1.87, 95% CI: 1.06, 3.29], internet as a source of information [AOR = 1.80, 95% CI: 1.1, 2.94], awareness [AOR = 1.35, 95% CI: 1.03, 2.40], and being male [AOR = 1.73, 95% CI:1.06], telemedicine training [AOR = 2.33, 95% CI: 1.15, 4.72] and computer accessibility in their hospitals [AOR = 1.54,95% CI: 1.01, 2.35] were significantly associated with respondents’ awareness of telemedicine services. Conclusion More than half of the participants were well-versed in and aware of telemedicine applications. Information sources, having IT support staff, information sharing culture, gender, and awareness were significant for telemedicine service knowledge, and telemedicine training and computer access were significant factors for health professionals’ awareness of telemedicine services. As a result, health professionals should receive appropriate and ongoing awareness-raising training on telemedicine systems.
Background: -Telemedicine is the delivery of healthcare services at a distance. Despite it is an emerging and infancy technology in a developing country, utilizing the technology for delivering healthcare services is low in Ethiopia. To maximize and facilitate Telemedicine adoption it prominently requires information about the knowledge and awareness of telemedicine services among health professionals.Methods: - An institution-based cross-sectional study design was conducted among 423 health professionals working at Amhara Region Referral Hospitals from February 12-March 20/2020. The data were collected using self-administered structured questionnaire. Desk review was done to assure the data quality and then data was entered into EPI INFO version 7 and exported into SPSS version 20 for statistical analysis. Descriptive statistics, bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analysis were done. Odds ratio with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) was used to identify associated factors.Result: About 56% of health professionals had good knowledge and 57.4% had high awareness towards telemedicine services with 411 (97.2%) response rate. Information sharing culture [AOR=3.01, 95% CI: 1.89, 4.80], having IT support staff [AOR=1.87, 95%CI: 1.06, 3.29], internet as information source [AOR=1.80, 95%CI:1.1, 2.94], awareness [AOR=1.35,95% CI: 1.03, 2.40], being male [AOR=1.73,95% CI:1.06, 2.81] were significantly associated with the knowledge of the respondents towards telemedicine services and telemedicine training [AOR= 2.33, 95% CI: 1.15, 4.72] and computer accessibility in their hospitals [AOR= 1.54, 95% CI: 1.01, 2.35] were significantly associated with the awareness of the respondents towards telemedicine services.Conclusion: More than half of the respondents had good knowledge and high awareness of telemedicine services. Information source, having IT support staff, information sharing culture, gender and awareness were significant factors for the knowledge of telemedicine service and telemedicine training and computer access were significant factors of awareness of health professionals towards telemedicine services. Therefore Appropriate and regular awareness creation training of telemedicine systems should be given to the health professional.
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