Title: A framework for assessing e-health preparedness

Authors: Nilmini S. Wickramasinghe, Adam M.A. Fadlalla, Elie Geisler, Jonathan L. Schaffer

Addresses: Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44114, USA. ' Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44114, USA. ' Illinois Institute of Technology, 565 W Adams Street, M/C 294, Chicago, IL 60607, USA. ' The Cleveland Clinic, 9500 Euclid Avenue, Desk A41 Cleveland, OH 44195, USA

Abstract: Whilst healthcare is the biggest service industry on the globe, it has yet to realise the full potential of the e-business revolution in the form of e-health. This is due to many reasons including the fact that the healthcare industry is faced with many complex challenges in trying to deliver cost-effective, high-value, accessible healthcare and has traditionally been slow to embrace new business techniques and technologies. Given that e-health, to a great extent, is a macro level concern that has far reaching micro level implications, this paper firstly develops a framework to assess a country|s preparedness with respect to embracing e-health (the application of e-commerce to healthcare) and from this an e-health preparedness grid to facilitate the assessment of any e-health initiative. Taken together, the integrative framework and preparedness grid provide useful and necessary tools to enable successful e-health initiatives to ensue by helping country and/or an organisation within a country to identify and thus address areas that require further attention in order for it to undertake a successful e-health initiative.

Keywords: e-health; evidence-based medicine; framework; electronic healthcare; e-healthcare; infrastructure; telemedicine; preparedness.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEH.2005.006478

International Journal of Electronic Healthcare, 2005 Vol.1 No.3, pp.316 - 334

Published online: 13 Mar 2005 *

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