Managing as Designing: Transforming Digital Healthcare Interoperability

Digital healthcare transformations promise improved overall quality healthcare and patient continued care among others. However, quality healthcare and continued patient care can be hampered by various challenges including insufficient collaboration among healthcare centers, and limited data exchanges between health information systems (HIS). Such challenges can be overcome through collaborative digital healthcare initiatives in which, HIS are designed with data exchange capabilities that enable healthcare centers to easily exchange patient information across boundaries. However, several existing initiatives are carried out in isolation, and there is limited practical knowledge on how to collaboratively manage and design HIS’ interoperability. Consequently, this study investigated a managing as designing (MaD) approach taken by a successful HIS interoperability initiative in Sweden. Data was collected mainly through interviews with key informants within the implementation team. Based on study findings, a MaD HIS-interoperability conceptual framework that can guide the management and design of future HIS’ interoperability was developed

An Implementation Process of Interoperability: A Case-Study of Health Information Systems (HIS)

Several advances have been made towards health information systems (HIS) use and implementations. However, these advances have not been matched by equal advances in HIS interoperability implementations. Current challenges in this domain are partly due to lack of implementation knowledge hence resulting into a number of failed HIS interoperability implementations. To gain substantive implementation knowledge on HIS interoperability projects, we have carried out interviews through an interpretive case-study approach to investigate a successful HIS interoperability project. Through this approach we propose an initial set of HIS interoperability implementation best practices comprising of these key processes: discovering interoperability need, projecting outcome, managing change and adopting an appropriate interoperability strategy which together depict a contingence management relationship. We conclude that this initial set of best practices contributes substantive knowledge that can guide future HIS interoperability implementations

Incidental or Intentional? Achieving Consumer Empowerment in Electronic Healthcare Information Exchange

The emergence of technology which allows for electronic Healthcare Information Exchange (HIE) has created a need for change in the healthcare industry. Because sensitive health information can be shared electronically between many entities, it is important to re-examine how information should be shared. Recent initiatives have examined HIE technology, with the intention to involve the consumer/patient as a key stakeholder. Such initiatives seek to empower patients, and often claim that new technology can do so. This study investigates the dimensions of consumer empowerment in HIE and how consumer empowerment in HIE could be achieved. The analysis revealed that achieving consumer empowerment is a process of either intentional or incidental change, and is a multi-faceted concept. The process of consumer empowerment is presented from the grounded theory analysis of three levels of data sources. The implications are critical to generate appropriate policy, law, and technology

Putting Interoperability on Health-information-systems’ Implementation Agenda

The increasing demand of past patient medical information at the point of care, creates new data sharing and exchange demands on health information systems (HIS). However, a number of existing HIS have data exchange challenges given that they are ordinarily designed as vertical silos without interoperability obligations. Yet, to have data exchange within HIS and across health facilities, participating systems ought to be interoperable. However, interoperability is usually not considered a key design requirement during HIS implementations. Therefore, relying on exceptional existing practices to create benchmark design knowledge, the author employs a sense making perspective to analyze how HIS implementers arrive at their interoperability design requirements. Through this approach, an initial set of interoperability design prerequisites for purposively designing HIS’ interoperability is proposed. These include: knowing who, knowing what, knowing how and knowing which. A further study implication is the use of a sense-making perspective in exploring system design requirements

Grounded theory and action research as pillars for interpretive information systems research: A comparative study

AbstractIn the literature survey, there is evidence “why an interpretive paradigm is more suitable for evaluating e-government systems”. However, more than one method can be used when applying interpretive paradigm for evaluating information systems (as we do not consider e-government systems as exception) such as Action Research (AR) and Grounded Theory (GT). In this regard, two problems will arise: First, there is no explicit method that clarifies how AR and GT methods can be used for evaluating information systems. The second problem is to determine which method of them will be more appropriate for evaluating information systems.Accordingly, two frameworks for evaluating e-government systems have been proposed, namely ‘Grounded Evaluation Framework’ (GEF) and ‘Action Research Evaluation Framework’ (AREF), which are based on Grounded Theory (GT) and Action Research (AR) methods respectively, to give an example how GT and AR methods can be used in evaluating information systems. The suggested GEF and AREF have been applied to the “University Enrolment Service” in Egyptian e-government, and the findings have been analyzed to conclude that GEF is more appropriate for evaluating e-government systems

Change or fail? Small business survival and digital marketing strategies during Covid-19 pandemic

Purpose - Covid-19 has brought a paradigm shift, many small businesses have gone bankrupt, and many others have not known how to take advantage of the digital world to survive and succeed. Seeking to investigate this case, particularly in Portugal and in the Fashion and Handicraft sector, we could see a pattern of digital strategies successfully used by real companies and would come closer to defining the future of digital marketing in the small business sector. Design/methodology/approach - The research employs an interpretative paradigmatic positioning, using the deductive method through qualitative analysis. The research object of this study are the answers of 23 small enterprises owners in Portugal, of the fashion and handicrafts sector, who were interviewed with the aim of analysing the digital marketing strategies currently in place related to providing access to the company, engaging the audience, personalising the offer, connecting with the audience and inviting consumers´ collaboration. Findings - The findings suggest that the identified set of digital strategies found in the literature can be employed by small enterprises, leading to better performance, both financially and socially. It analyzed ways of putting them into practice, their advantages, negative aspects and how they all connect to the consumer. The digital strategies most used by SME's are social media and the use of a website, and they are one of the most effective. The use of product configuration software and CRM (Customer Relationship Management) were proven to be the least used and therefore least effective by SMEs. Originality/value - As a recent topic, it doesn't have many studies on digital strategies when it comes to small enterprises. Intercepting what was found in the literature with the answers of these small company's owners creates a practical and real model of what happens with its use. The contributions of this study could help SME companies to improve their digital marketing strategies and brings another point of view in terms of academic contribution.Objetivo - Covid-19 trouxe uma mudança de paradigma, muitas pequenas empresas foram à falência e muitas outras não souberam tirar partido do mundo digital para sobreviver e ter sucesso. Procurando investigar este caso, particularmente em Portugal e no sector da Moda e Artesanato, pudemos ver um padrão de estratégias digitais utilizadas com sucesso por empresas reais e que se aproximariam da definição do futuro do marketing digital, no sector das pequenas empresas. Conceção/método/abordagem A investigação emprega um posicionamento paradigmático interpretativo, utilizando o método dedutivo através da análise qualitativa. O objeto de investigação deste estudo são as respostas de 23 pequenos empresários em Portugal, do sector da moda e do artesanato, que foram entrevistados com o objetivo de analisar as estratégias de marketing digital atualmente em vigor relacionadas com o acesso à empresa, o envolvimento do público, a personalização da oferta, a ligação com o público e o convite à colaboração dos consumidores. Conclusões - Os resultados sugerem que o conjunto identificado de estratégias digitais encontradas na literatura pode ser utilizado por pequenas empresas, levando a um melhor desempenho, tanto financeiro como social. Foram analisadas formas de as pôr em prática, as suas vantagens, aspetos negativos e a forma como todas elas se ligam ao consumidor. As estratégias digitais mais utilizadas pelas PME's são as Redes Sociais e a utilização de um Website, destacadas como as mais eficazes. A utilização de software de configuração de produtos e CRM provou ser a menos utilizada e, portanto, menos eficaz pelas PMEs. Originalidade/valor - Como tópico recente, não existem muitos estudos sobre estratégias digitais quando se trata de pequenas empresas. Intercetar o que foi encontrado na literatura com as respostas dos proprietários destas pequenas empresas cria um modelo prático e real do que acontece com a sua utilização. As contribuições deste estudo poderiam ajudar as PMEs a melhorar as suas estratégias de marketing digital e traz um outro ponto de vista em termos de contribuição académica

Employing Interpretive Research to Build Theory of Information Systems Practice

This paper provides guidance and an example for carrying out research using an interpretive framework. Until quite recently, there has been little available in the IS literature to guide the interpretive researcher to build theory of IS practice. While structured as a typical research paper, this paper is different in that the focus is on conceptual issues and the research methods rather than the findings. Unlike positivist research, there is no accepted general model for communicating interpretive research. Similarly, few guidelines exist for conducting the inductive process central to interpretive research. Throughout the paper, issues relating to the choice and application of the methods in terms of conducting inductive research are discussed. Overall, the focus provides an in-depth discussion of the particular interpretive research that I undertook so that other researchers can read of an example that may be similar to their own and therefore guide their work

Launching new educational provision in China

Services are dominant entity in the global economy nowadays. Previous research has largely concentrated on new physical product launch. This research study generalizes and extends the current new product launch literature review by focusing on new service launch. Rather than focus primarily on a developed market, this project focuses on an international market. Thus, this research study addresses the research question: What are the successful strategic and tactical launch decisions for the launch of new educational provision in China? The research identifies the successful service launch strategies and understanding the nature of a proficient service launch strategy in the international market. To expand the previous research heavily focused on financial services that are standardized and mass-produced, an in-depth study of new service launch in complicated services featuring a high degree of complexity and customization was conducted. This study integrates empirical data with theoretical concepts from various disciplines (e.g., services marketing, new service development, international services and education marketing) to encourage a new perspective to the research of new international service launch for an improved understanding of launching new educational provision in China. The study uses a multiple case research strategy where empirical data was collected in three transnational higher education institutions (TEIs). Challenging extant research that has focused on a manager’s perspective, this current research focuses on the dual perspectives of TEIs and students, to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the complicated phenomenon of launching new educational provision in China. In a practical sense, it provides greater insight into understanding what contributes to successful international service launch and in effect, attaining the goal of improving launch success rates by allowing foreign institutions interested in launching new educational provision in China to refine their launch decisions for new TNE offerings. Any reader wishing to understand more about the workings of the TNE marketplace in China, the management practices and managerial directions therein would benefit from this detailed research project

An evaluation of open source software adoption by UK SMEs in the IT industry

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.This study evaluates the adoption of Open Source Software (OSS) by IT Small to Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in the UK. The growing popularity and acceptance of OSS continues to draw much attention in research and practice. However, researchers and IT practitioners within the UK SME sector still face challenges in understanding the issues that influence the acceptance, adoption, and diffusion of OSS. While previous research studies have focused mainly on the software development model and the unique characteristics of OSS, the area of OSS adoption by UK SMEs has largely been ignored. Furthermore, there is a lack of widely-acceptable theories that explain the adoption of OSS, implying that there is limited understanding of OSS adoption by UK SMEs. This gap in research has led this thesis to evaluate existing adoption theories and then apply the 'Decomposed Theory of Planned Behaviour' to model the adoption of OSS by SMEs. Based on the emerged conceptual model, an innovative and structured qualitative research design that uses a case study strategy was developed to evaluate the adoption of OSS across 10 UK SMEs in the IT industry. The analysis of the standardised data from the case study interviews led to the definition of the 16 factors of an emergent theory of OSS adoption by IT SMEs. The analysis of that empirical model has led to important conclusions including the following five issues, summarily. (1) The participant IT SMEs were drawn to different benefits, and experienced different challenges, in using OSS, suggesting that there is subjectivity and complexity in the factors influencing OSS adoption. (2) As in most Information and Communication Technology (ICT) adoption, ITcapability was identified to be essential for successful adoption of OSS, and therefore, it presents potential for important cooperative and collaborative support with OSS communities. (3) The emergent theory from this research study provide researchers and practitioners with variables for surveying critical-success-factors and a reference model for understanding the adoption of OSS. (4) The emergent theory and other general findings from this study are likely to have relevance in other areas of Information Systems research and practice, owing to the factors and theoretical framework that are common to OSS and general ICT acceptance, adoption, and diffusion. (5) This study appears to be the first that has focused on developing a widely-acceptable theory of OSS adoption by IT SMEs in the UK, suggesting that this innovative research study is a novel contribution that has important implications for theory and practice in OSS and general ICT acceptance, adoption, and diffusion

A contingency management framework to mitigate cybersecurity threats to electronic health records in the public health sector in South Africa

Most developing countries in the African continent, including South Africa, seem to be lagging behind in research, policy development, and how to prevent cybersecurity threats. These findings are evident in the significant number of cyberattacks recorded in the Cost of Data Breach Study and Global Analysis by Ponemon Institute. Research studies are placing the blame on the element of portability in electronic health records (EHRs) that has contributed to numerous vulnerabilities to hospital healthcare data. As a result, the healthcare information of patients in those hospitals that are equipped with interconnected medical devices is exposed to cybersecurity threats. The purpose of the study was to develop a healthcare contingency management framework that can be used by healthcare institutions to mitigate cybersecurity threats to EHRs in the public health sector in South Africa. The integrated systems theory (IST) which amalgamated five different theories relating to information security management was used as a theoretical foundation in this study. In achieving this purpose, the literature review was selected as the research design best suited to answer the question presented in this research study. An expert review was used to refine the framework outcome using interviews and questionnaires. The contribution that will be made by this study will be in a form of a conceptual framework that will be used to mitigate cybersecurity threats concerning EHRs in the public health sector. The healthcare contingency management framework (HCMF) can be adopted by either the National Health Department or Provincial Health Department to be used by healthcare facilities as a guide in reviewing their support function, process management, governance management, and their contingency management. Similar future studies need to be conducted on large scale such as in the whole public sector with the focus on the health sector.Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Management and Commerce, 202