Nurses' Experiences of Using Hospital Information Systems: A Qualitative Study

Background & Aim: Nurses are the largest group of users of hospital information system and understanding their experiences in the use of this tool has a significant impact on the success or failure of it and ultimately, the quality of care for patients. The aim of this study was to explain the experiences of nurses for using hospital information system in educational hospitals of Tabriz in 2015. Methods: The present study was carried out using qualitative and phenomenological approach. Participants included 14 nurses who were selected by purposeful sampling method. The data were collected by using deep interviews. After obtaining informed consent of the participants, interviews were recorded. For analyzing the data, seven-stage Colaizzi method was used. Results: After analyzing the data, a total of 460 primary codes, 9 sub-themes and 2 main themes were revealed: 1- structural deficiencies of the hospital information system 2- Hospital information system efficiency in nursing care. Conclusion: The results of the present study indicate the positive effects of using HIS in promoting patient care; however, disadvantages such as re-work, neglecting patient bedside and system-related problems were also reported by nurses using HIS. Therefore, it is recommended to enhance the facilitation factors and fix the hardware and software deficiencies of this system in order to increase its efficiency in improving the care and also the use of portable PCs connected to the HIS system.