PB1048 - Implementation of Electronic Medical Records in a resource-limited Haematology department in North-West Nigeria

Background: The electronic medical records (EMR) refer to the digital form of a patient’s information saved on a computer. It ensures the quick collection and completeness of information, its accuracy and the efficiency of the documenting staff. In addition, EMR provides easy access to data for audit and research. However, its implementation is still low in the developing world. In Nigeria, most hospitals still practice a manual paper documentation of patients’ information which is fraught with missing data and difficulty in the retrieval of documents.

Aims: We aim to report an improvement of medical record keeping in a resource-limited bleeding disorders practice following the implementation of EMR in a tertiary Teaching Hospital, BDTH Kaduna, Nigeria.

Methods: Following an ethical waiver, we audited the EMR information of patients reviewed by a specialist haematologist from January 2021 to June 2022. Furthermore, the bleeding and coagulation tests conducted during the period were also retrieved and analyzed. One thousand two hundred sixty five and 650 tests were performed in the years 2021 and 2022 respectively. Investigations included thrombin time, prothrombin time, activated partial thromboplastin time, bleeding time, clotting factors viii and ix assays and d-dimer levels.

Results: One hundred and seventy four patients were reviewed out of whom 103(59.2%) were females and 71(40.8%) males. Thirty nine (22.4%) of those reviewed were surgical and intensive care unit patients, 37(21.3%) were haematology patients, 24(13.8%) were referred from the obstetrics and gynaecology unit while the remaining 74(42.5%) patients were from the various departments of the hospital.

Conclusion(s): We were able to have easy access and retrieve information of patients that were reviewed and had bleeding/coagulation tests during the period of audit because of the presence of complete data in the computer. This enables this report to be made to share with others on the benefits of EMR.