ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS : A HYBRID SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW AND BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS

Abstract

In recent years, electronic health records have been the subject of numerous research studies. However, a comprehensive and integrative review remains scarce. This study aims to bridge that gap by conducting a hybrid systematic literature review and bibliometric analysis on electronic  health records (EHR) research using current empirical evidence. A total of 122.308 publications were retrieved from the Scopus database using the keywords "Electronic AND Health AND Records" in article titles, abstracts, and keywords, covering the period from One thousand nine hundred fifty-eight to May Thirteen, Two thousand twenty-five. The PRISMA framework guided the systematic review process, and VOSviewer was employed to analyze citation networks, author collaborations, and keyword co-occurrence patterns. The study reveals that electronic health records research has shown exponential growth, especially in the last decade, with increasing interdisciplinary interest from healthcare, computer science, and information systems. Key contributors, thematic clusters, and emerging research fronts were identified, providing insight into the intellectual and collaborative landscape of electronic health records scholarship. The study is limited by its exclusive reliance on the Scopus database and English-language publications, potentially omitting relevant research from other databases or languages. Additionally, bibliometric tools capture publication patterns but not the qualitative depth of individual contributions. By mapping trends and collaboration patterns, this research can inform healthcare policymakers, system designers, and academic institutions in prioritizing efforts, allocating resources, and fostering partnerships to advance electronic health records development and adoption, ultimately contributing to more efficient and integrated healthcare systems. It offers valuable insights for academics and practitioners seeking to understand the evolution, structure, and future directions of this critical area in digital health.