Title: Barriers to e-health business processes

Authors: Suzanne Mieczkowska, Matthew Hinton, David Barnes

Addresses: Open University Business School, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA, UK. ' Open University Business School, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA, UK. ' School of Management, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, Surrey, TW20 0EX, UK

Abstract: This paper builds from recent case study research in commercial organisations to develop the hypothesis that many of the barriers to e-health processes are similar to those encountered by commercial businesses. The paper reports findings from a case study within the pathology department of a UK National Health Service (NHS) Trust. The NHS has a risk-averse culture where many individuals practice defensive behaviour and there are deeply embedded working practices. The paper suggests that if the NHS is to seize the opportunities offered by substantial new investments in e-health systems that utilise internet-based ICTs, greater effort needs to be made to understand and address the socio-cultural factors affecting the UK healthcare system.

Keywords: business processes; e-health; implementation; information systems; National Health Service; NHS; United Kingdom; UK; healthcare.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEH.2004.004657

International Journal of Electronic Healthcare, 2004 Vol.1 No.1, pp.47 - 59

Published online: 26 May 2004 *

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