STAKEHOLDERS IN THE PROCESS OF E-HEALTH DEVELOPMENT: THEORY AND PRACTICAL EXPERIENCE OF SELECTED FOREIGN COUNTRIES Cover Image

SUINTERESUOTOSIOS PUSĖS E. SVEIKATOS PLĖTROS PROCESE: TEORIJA IR UŽSIENIO ŠALIŲ PRAKTINĖ PATIRTIS
STAKEHOLDERS IN THE PROCESS OF E-HEALTH DEVELOPMENT: THEORY AND PRACTICAL EXPERIENCE OF SELECTED FOREIGN COUNTRIES

Author(s): Rūta Tamošiūnaitė, Rasa Rotomskienė
Subject(s): Politics / Political Sciences
Published by: Mykolas Romeris University
Keywords: stakeholders; e-health; stakeholder engagement; level of stakeholder engagement; information and communication technologies (ICT); healthcare sector

Summary/Abstract: Purpose – to reveal the role of stakeholders (especially the future users of the IS being developed) in e-health development process and to enrich the existing body of knowledge in the field with new findings from an in-depth empirical case study research by using the framework of the theoretical stakeholder participation ladder, which was developed by Arnstein (1969) and later extended by Friedman and Miles (2006). Design/methodology/approach – an overview of the exsisting scientific literature in the field and generalization of the findings of the langitudial qualitative empirical case study research based on a participant observation methodology. Findings – the amount of research papers on the role of stakeholder engagement in the process of ICT development and implementation is increasing; however, the number of articles on social aspects of ICT implementation remains yet rather low. Even a smaller number of articles are focused on the role of stakeholder engagement in e-health development. An in-depth overview of the exsisting body of scientific research findings and the results of the empirical research undertaken by the authors of this aricle allow to state that the body of scientific empirically grounded evidence is increasing that the stakeholder engagement (especially the future users of the IS being developed) in the process of e-health development is a critical factor to reach high quality, innovation and managerial change sustainability in the process. By using the framework of theoretical stakeholder participation ladder, which was initially developed by Arnstein (1969) and later extended by Friedman and Miles (2006) and which represents the degrees of stakeholders engagement quality and on the basis of qualitative empirical research results, recommendations are provided to practitioners on the type of stakeholders how and when should be included in the process to reach the most efficient results in the process of e-health development. Research limitations/implications – empirical part of the research encompasses the analysis of e-health development experience of two countries (England and Wales). Further research can assess the relevance of conclusions towards other countries as well as Lithuania. Practical implications – analytical part of the research is based on an in-depth analysis of qualitative empirical research results. As the outcome of the executed research, recommendations are provided for practitioners working in the field of e-health development. Originality/Value – the article presents an overview of the most recent scientific literature on the topic, which then theoretical overview links with new insights from the qualitative empirical research.

  • Issue Year: 3/2013
  • Issue No: 02
  • Page Range: 448-371
  • Page Count: 24
  • Language: Lithuanian