Title: Developing digital health policy recommendations for pandemic preparedness and responsiveness

Authors: Joshua Ebere Chukwuere; Aaron Baird

Addresses: Department of Information Systems, North-West University, Mahikeng, South Africa ' Robinson College of Business, Georgia State University, 35 Broad Street, Atlanta, GA 30303, USA

Abstract: Disease pandemics, once thought to be historical relics, are now again challenging healthcare systems globally. Of essential importance is sufficiently investing in preparedness and responsiveness, but approaches to such investments vary significantly by country. These variations provide excellent opportunities to learn and prepare for future pandemics. Therefore, we examine digital health infrastructure and the state of healthcare and public health services in relation to pandemic preparedness and responsiveness. The research focuses on two countries: South Africa and the USA. We apply case analysis at the country level toward understanding digital health policy preparedness and responsiveness to a pandemic. We also provide a teaching note at the end for use in guiding students in this area to formulate digital health policy recommendations for pandemic preparedness and responsiveness.

Keywords: digital health; pandemic preparedness; pandemic responsiveness; healthcare; South Africa; USA.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBIS.2024.142608

International Journal of Business Information Systems, 2024 Vol.47 No.3, pp.374 - 388

Received: 18 Dec 2020
Accepted: 13 May 2021
Published online: 11 Nov 2024 *

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