Emotion and ambulatory EHR in the ARRA era

There is a growing focus in change management literature on the role of emotion in managing change. Barriers to adoption and effective implementation of ambulatory EHR-ranging from technical to financial to logistical-are well-described in the health-care IT literature. In the ARRA era, ambulatory practices are under increasing pressure to overcome these barriers. This article explores the emotional barriers to EHR adoption and implementation in ambulatory settings, synthesizing ideas drawn from business and psychology literature on emotion in organizational change. Key strategies for assessing and addressing these barriers are outlined.