The Evaluation of SEPAS National Project Based on Electronic Health Record System (EHRS) Coordinates in Iran

BACKGROUND: Electronic Health Records (EHRs) are secure private lifetime records that can be shared by using interoperability standards between different organizations and units. These records are created by the productive system that is called EHR system. Implementing EHR systems has a number of advantages such as facilitating access to medical records, supporting patient care, and improving the quality of care and health care decisions. The project of electronic health record system in Iran, which is the goal of this study, is called SEPAS. With respect to the importance of EHR and EHR systems the researchers investigated the project from two perspectives: determining the coordinates of the project and how it evolved, and incorporating the coordinates of EHR system in this project. METHODS: In this study two evaluation tools, a checklist and a questionnaire, were developed based on texts and reliable documentation. The questionnaire and the checklist were validated using content validity by receiving the experts’ comments and the questionnaire’s reliability was estimated through Test-retest(r =87%). Data were collected through study, observation, and interviews with experts and specialists of SEPAS project. RESULTS: This research showed that SEPAS project, like any other project, could be evaluated. It has some aims; steps, operational phases and certain start and end time, but all the resources and required facilities for the project have not been considered. Therefore it could not satisfy its specified objective and the useful and unique changes which are the other characteristics of any project have not been achieved. In addition, the findings of EHR system coordinates can be determined in 4 categories as Standards and rules, Telecommunication-Communication facilities, Computer equipment and facilities and Stakeholders. CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicated that SEPAS has the ability to use all standards of medical terminology and health classification systems in the case of Maksa approval (The reference health coding of Iran). ISO13606 was used as the main standard in this project. Regarding the telecommunication-communication facilities of the project, the findings showed that its link is restricted to health care centers which does not cover other institutions and organizations involved in public health. The final result showed that SEPAS is in the early stages of execution. And the full implementation of EHR needs the provision of the infrastructure of the National Health Information Network that is the same as EHR system.