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Differing perspectives on parent access to their child's electronic medical record during neonatal intensive care
Rebecca K Chung1, Una Olivia Kim2, Mir Abdul Basir2
1a University of Iowa Health Care , Iowa City , IA , USA.
Insights
Parents and medical professionals disagree on giving parents direct access to their child's electronic medical record (EMR) in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Further research is needed to understand the benefits of EMR access for family-centered care.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal intensive care
- Family-centered care
- Health informatics
Background:
- Family-centered care principles advocate for parental access to their child's medical records during neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) hospitalization.
- Current practices in many NICUs restrict independent parental access to electronic medical records (EMRs).
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the perspectives of medical professionals and parents regarding independent parental access to a child's EMR during NICU hospitalization.
- To identify potential barriers and benefits associated with this practice.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional pilot survey study was conducted.
- Participants included parents (legal guardians of NICU patients for ≥14 days) and NICU medical professionals (physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, respiratory therapists).
- Inclusion criteria required participants to be 18 years or older and English-literate.
Main Results:
- Medical professionals expressed concerns about increased workload, documentation time, potential litigation, and reluctance to record sensitive information.
- Parents reported feeling a lack of control and a desire for direct EMR access.
- Parents believed EMR access would enhance their understanding of their child's illness, improve chart accuracy, and increase their advocacy.
Conclusions:
- Significant differences exist between NICU parents' and medical professionals' views on independent parental EMR access.
- Additional research is necessary to fully evaluate the potential of independent parental EMR access in enhancing family-centered neonatal care.
Objective:
To improve informed medical decision-making, principles for family-centered neonatal care recommend that parents have access to their child's medical record on an ongoing basis during neonatal intensive unit care (NICU) hospitalization. Currently, many NICUs do not allow independent parent access to their child's electronic medical record (EMR) during hospitalization. We undertook a cross-sectional survey pilot study of medical professionals and parents to explore opinions regarding this practice.
Study Design:
Inclusion criteria: 18-years old, English-literate, legal guardian of patients admitted to the NICU for 14 days. NICU medical professionals included physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, and respiratory therapists.
Result:
Medical professionals believed parent access would make their work more difficult, increase time documenting and updating families, making them more liable to litigation and hesitant to chart sensitive information. However, parents felt that they lacked control over their child's care and desired direct access to the EMR. Parents believed this would improve accuracy of their child's medical chart, and increase advocacy and understanding of their child's illness.
Conclusion:
NICU parents and medical professionals have differing perspectives on independent parental access to their child's EMR. More research is needed to explore the potential of independent parental EMR access to further improve family-centered neonatal care.
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