Factors that physicians find encouraging and discouraging about electronic prescribing: a quantitative study

To determine factors that physicians find encouraging and discouraging about e-prescribing and to compare these factors based on physicians' adoption status, a cross-sectional study was conducted using an internet-based survey administered to a national convenience sample of primary care physicians. A scale was developed to measure factors related to the adoption of e-prescribing. Analysis procedures included exploratory factor analysis, multivariate analysis of variance, and Tukey's post-hoc tests. 443 surveys were received and seven e-prescribing factors were identified. Pre-implementation and cost factors were found to be most discouraging, while software features were found to be most encouraging. The fact that current e-prescribers found e-prescribing factors to be more encouraging than future or non-e-prescribers suggests that 'fear of the unknown' may play a role in prescribers' perceptions of e-prescribing and associated software. These findings will enable consultants, vendors, and policymakers to facilitate the adoption of e-prescribing by directly targeting the factors that are most salient to physicians.