Feasibility of ehealth implementation in India learning from global experience

Abstract

The present paper explores the factors for the effective implementation of eHealth in India by taking into account the diverse benefits and challenges at organization and practitioner's level. The present study is exploratory in nature which has been carried out after comparing the study across the globe. Various benefits and challenges explored from previous studies are used to discover the factors for effective implementation of ehealth in India. Findings of study centered to identify factors for effective implementation of eHealth at four different levels: Practitioners' level, Organizational Level, Patients' Level, and Government level. The most important factors at practitioners level are an alignment of the practitioners with objectives and making adequate arrangements for training of the practitioners. The important factors required to overcome problems at practitioners level are perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and attitude to use eHealth. At the organization level, important factors are an alignment of stakeholders with current goals, skills set of staff, the relationship among healthcare professionals, capacity for implementation, training and development and employees motivations. At this level, important factors to deal with these challenges are customer value, to build trust in the healthcare provider, interoperability among different healthcare providers, characteristics and mindset of healthcare providers. At the government level, the imperative factors as required to handle different challenges are government policies, sources of funds, reliable health infrastructure and engagement of various stakeholders. Other important factors at this level are the status of eHealth readiness in different areas and levels, social influences and human development index. Thispaper highlights the eHealth experiences across the globe and identifies various benefits and challenges in the implementation of eHealth, which will help the decision makers at a different level in India to successfully integrate information technology with healthcare.