The six P's of the next step in electronic patient records in the Netherlands

The objective of this study was to evaluate a decade of Electronic Patient Record development. During the study a second question was added: How to take the next step in the Netherlands? This paper describes the developments but the main results create a framework for the future situation. The USE IT method was used, which is derived from DOI and TAM theory but applies it in a qualitative way. The results show six P's that have to be covered to introduce a nation-wide EPR. The first three handle the end users of the EPR: Patients, Professionals and the Public. The latter three show the action types of a nation-wide EPR, namely: Purpose, Process and Prerequisites. In conclusion, the combination of these six P's show that the main purpose for a patient is the quality of health, that the process of the professional has to be smoothed and that the data quality has to be guaranteed as well as privacy.