Electronic medical records offer opportunities to generate automatic clinical reminders, a feature believed to improve patient care. This study explored barriers to adoption through several observational and survey techniques. Investigators identified ten barriers to effective use, which included workload, time to remove inapplicable reminders, the use of paper forms, accessibility of workstations, and the presence of resident physician and trainees. Discussion involves detailed account of each barrier and how certain future interventions may address them. The authors advocate using this multiprong methodology to identify barriers to effective use of new information technology.