Methodology for a Systematic Review of EHRs, Patient Safety, and Care Coordination in South African Public Hospitals

The study employs a secondary data collection approach to systematically gather and evaluate published evidence on Electronic Health Records (EHRs), patient safety, and care coordination in South African public hospitals. The primary goal is to analyze existing knowledge rather than generating new data.

Key concepts like EHRs and patient safety were identified to develop search strings. A systematic search was conducted across academic databases such as Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, and ScienceDirect. Furthermore, official documents from the South African National Department of Health and reputable organizations were reviewed for contextual information.

Studies were initially screened by titles and abstracts, with irrelevant studies excluded. Relevant studies underwent a full-text review. The final dataset only included studies published within the last eight years related to EHRs, patient safety, and care coordination. The study utilizes peer-reviewed articles, systematic reviews, conference papers, and government documents, explicitly excluding questionnaires or interviews.

Research instruments consisted of a literature search strategy, a data extraction template, and a thematic coding framework. The secondary data method is justified due to its cost-effectiveness, time efficiency, and the ability to access diverse studies across various healthcare contexts, enabling comparisons between international best practices and South African healthcare realities.