Usability assessment of an open-source simulated electronic medical record in pharmacy education

The growth of electronic medical records (EMRs) has been a critical component of evolving pharmacy practice, catalyzed by foundational initiatives such as the HITECH Act in 2009. The objective of this study was to evaluate the usability and student perceptions of a novel, open-source, educational EMR (EdEMR) for integration in the PharmD program at the University of British Columbia (UBC).

Participants were PharmD students at UBC and had to complete a series of survey questions and EdEMR tasks including a Systems Usability Scale (SUS) evaluation. Task completion time, mouse clicks, SUS score, and 5-point Likert scale rankings of student opinions on the use of the EdEMR were collected.

Seven students successfully completed the study. Participants self-ranked themselves as novice EMR users who used EMRs a few times a week. The mean time to complete the tasks was 6 min, 42 seconds and was approximately double that of benchmark times (mean benchmark = 2 min, 20 seconds). The EdEMR scored within the upper quartile of SUS scores (mean = 83), indicating good usability. Participants identified that the EMR would most optimally be used for distance learning and case-based learning.

The EdEMR showed good usability as demonstrated by the successfully completed tasks and SUS score. Participants were receptive to the EdEMR's application as an online learning tool and for case-based learning. The EdEMR is an enticing, open-source tool currently available to all pharmacy programs and could further support online and remote teaching.