[Piloting an electronic death certificate (eTB app)-physicians' user experiences].

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Public Health Surveillance
• Medical Documentation

Context:

• Traditional paper-based death certificates in Germany are prone to errors, readability issues, and delays.
• Existing German death certificates do not meet World Health Organization standards for international comparability.
• A new electronic death certificate (eTB) app was developed to address these challenges.

Purpose:

• To assess the user-friendliness and acceptance of a newly developed electronic death certificate (eTB) app.
• To evaluate the potential of digitalization in improving the accuracy and efficiency of death certificate processes.
• To gather physician feedback on the eTB app's features and overall utility.

Summary:

• A mixed-methods study involving 89 physicians using questionnaires and 11 physicians through interviews was conducted in two German federal states.
• The majority of physicians reported positive attitudes towards healthcare digitalization, perceived benefits in process and organization, and had minimal data security concerns.
• Physicians found the eTB app user-friendly, highlighting its plausibility checking, error prevention, and improved readability as key advantages.

Impact:

• The eTB app represents a significant advancement in the digitalization of healthcare, particularly in streamlining data transfer for cause of death statistics.
• The app's ease of use and effectiveness suggest a positive impact on the quality and timeliness of public health data.
• Further improvements are needed for widespread practical implementation, but the eTB app shows strong potential for modernizing vital statistics collection.