Assessment of medical records management practices at Masaka Regional Referral Hospital in Masaka District.

Abstract

This study sought to assess the different records management practices that at Masaka Regional Referral Hospital. The objectives of the study were: to find out the existing infrastructure for the management of patient medical records, assess how medical records management affects the quality of health service delivery at the Hospital, assess the availability of capacity for electronic records management in terms of human resources. Quantitative and qualitative approaches were employed. The sample was drawn from the services providers and from the healthcare service users. Questionnaires, interviews and observation were used to collect data. The findings showed that Masaka Regional Referral Hospital uses manual records management system in the creation, maintenance and usage of records as well as retrieval and disposal of medical records. In the findings, there were challenges related to misfiling and missing patient folders which sometimes lead to the creation of new patient folders. The study also discovered that the time spent in the retrieval of patient folders was also long due to the manual nature of the hospital records management system. The study recommended the adoption of electronic records management system as most public health institutions in the country are rapidly shifting to electronic records management system. The use of electronic records management system is believed to be efficiently and effectively promoting easy accessibility, retrieval of patient medical records and allows easy communication amongst the healthcare service institutions and healthcare providers