Abstract
INTRODUCTION: A well-informed decision needs the collection of accurate and organized data, which is becoming more essential in the healthcare industry due to the increasing integration of various technologies. The literature has revealed that the magnitude of intention to use personal health records among healthcare providers is low. Consequently, this study aimed to assess healthcare providers' intentions to use personal health records and its factors in Ethiopia. METHODS: A facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 781 healthcare providers in referral hospitals in the Southwest Oromia region, Ethiopia. A simple sampling technique was used to select the study participants among healthcare providers. A pretested self-administered questionnaire was used to collect the data. The degree of correlation between exogenous and endogenous variables was described and validated using structural equation modeling using AMOS 26. RESULTS: The proportion of intention to use personal health records was 57.6%, 95% CI (53.9-61.2). Factors positively associated with intention to use personal health records were performance expectancy (β = 0.325, P < 0.01), effort expectancy (β = 0.289, P < 0.01), social influence (β = 0.216, P < 0.01), and facilitating condition (β = 0.242, P < 0.01). Age (β = 0.269, P = 0.040, β = 0.326, P < 0.001) positively moderated the relationship between performance expectancy, facilitating conditions to intention to use personal health records. CONCLUSIONS: In general, healthcare providers' intention to use personal health records were promising. Healthcare providers' intentions to use personal health records were significantly influenced by performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and facilitating conditions. Hence, implementers need to give priority to enhancing the provision of a better system, the knowledge and skills of healthcare providers, and awareness creation among staff by providing continuous training.