Texas State University – School of Health Administration Mask, A., Ris, M., Case, A., Kruse, C.S., PhD Barriers to the Adoption of Health Information Technology in Long-Term Care School of Health Administration College of Health Professions Research Forum, 2016 Abstract Health information technology (HIT) is quickly becoming an influential force in the long-term care industry and it can appear in many forms. Electronic health records, electronic registries, and patient data sharing are all examples of HIT utilization already in limited application. Long term care (LTC) is an information intensive setting. Long- term care facilities are responsible for the daily recording, maintenance, and reporting of a wide range of information that relates to the administration and operation of a facility and the care of each resident (Gaskin, S., Georgiou, A., Barton, D., & Westbrook, J., 2012). Information communication technology (ICT) must be examined as a possible tool to overcome such barriers (Georgiou, Marks, Braithwaite, & Westbrook, 2012). Figure 1: Search string with key terms, Boolean operators, and inclusion / exclusion criteria. Methods Using key terms from the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) and Boolean operators, a complex search string was entered into two well-known research databases, CINAHL and PubMed (MEDLINE). The initial search identified 1,844 articles/studies. The timeframe of desired publication date spanned 2012 to (early) Other inclusion criteria were: Academic or core medical journals and MEDLINE (peer-review), full text, English, and human. This narrowed the list of articles to 53. Abstracts of all 53 articles were reviewed independently for germane nature to our objective. References from this updated list were examined to identify additional articles, but none were identified. The final sample size was 19. Objective The purpose of this systematic review is to identify barriers to coordination of care experienced in HIT, specifically in relation to long-term care. The researchers believe that these barriers limit the success of efforts, such as HITECH and the Meaningful Use provision. The barriers identified by this review will serve as a foundation for future research into strategies that will one day allow for seamless coordination of care and better treatment for those in long-term care settings through the use of HIT. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) Authors constructed this review according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). This 27-item checklist provides an internationally-accepted format that provides systematic detail for each element of the common IMRaD structure (Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion) used in academic journals. The checklist was followed in all aspects of the preparation of this manuscript. Conclusions There is little motivation for the LTC industry to comply with HIT goals. Financial incentives through the HITECH Act gave financial benefits to those hospitals and care networks that utilize HIT, but LTC facilities were excluded from these benefits. The authors of this review suggest that incentive for reimbursement would greatly increase the motivation for LTC facilities to utilize HIT for coordination of care, and these incentives could help to cover the high cost of IT usage. Possible THEMES for results section: Researchers identified eight barriers to adoption and implementation of HIT as common themes. -lack of interoperability -dissatisfaction with design -security and safety issues -dissatisfaction with design -difficulty in obtaining stakeholders’ interest -inadequate incentive -high cost -burdensome electronic process -general lack of usability Table 2 Themes identified by the reviewers Table 1: (Excerpt) summary of study findings and observations from reviewers