Awareness and Use of Electronic Health Records in Entry-Level Occupational Therapy and Occupational Therapy Assistant Curricula

The Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) requires programs to instruct entry-level occupational therapy (OT) and occupational therapy assistant (OTA) students in technology that may include electronic documentation systems, distance communication, virtual environments, and telehealth (standard B1.8). At this time, there are no publications describing if and how electronic health record (EHR) instruction is implemented in entry-level OT and OTA programs. The purpose of this study is to investigate awareness and use of EHRs in entry-level OT and OTA curricula. Respondents from 76 nationally accredited entry-level programs (two OT doctoral, 24 OT masters, two OT combined bachelors/masters, and 48 OTA) completed a survey. The findings showed inconsistent and incomplete EHR instruction in entry-level OT and OTA education. This study provides a baseline for investigating best practices in EHR education for entry-level OT and OTA students.