Implementation of a single sign-on system between practice, research and learning systems.

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Computer Science
• Medical Education

Background:

• Healthcare enterprises utilize multiple specialized electronic medical systems, each with unique user management and authentication processes.
• This complexity leads to difficult navigation, disrupted clinical workflows, and challenges in managing user permissions for diverse healthcare providers.
• Users often face the burden of remembering multiple passwords and frequent login/logout procedures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the implementation of a single sign-on (SSO) system integrating an electronic medical records (EMR) system and a learning management system (LMS).
• To assess the impact of SSO on usability and workflow efficiency within a large academic institution's health enterprise.
• To address challenges in user authentication and authorization across disparate healthcare IT systems.

Main Methods:

• Developed and deployed a Central Authentication Service (CAS) module for OpenMRS, an electronic medical record system used for research and education.
• Implemented SSO across the academic enterprise, connecting the EMR system with the LMS.
• Assessed system usability through interviews with 54 students and 3 researchers before and after CAS module implementation.

Main Results:

• The CAS module successfully authenticated users with appropriate privileges, ensuring secure access to the medical records system.
• Users reported ease of use and a streamlined workflow, with no password requests encountered.
• The SSO implementation minimized disruption to clinical and educational workflows.

Conclusions:

• Enterprise-wide SSO systems are essential in healthcare to mitigate complexity, such as "password hell," and enhance usability and navigation.
• The implemented SSO solution improved user experience and workflow efficiency in an academic medical environment.
• Future plans include extending SSO integration to other healthcare enterprise systems.