Electronic Health Record in Hospitals: A Theoretical Framework for Collaborative Lifecycle Risk Management

Abstract

Tel: 1(514)987-3000 Citation: Poba-Nzaou P. Electronic Health Record in Hospitals: A Theoretical Framework for Collaborative Lifecycle Risk Management. J Healthc Commun. 2016, 1:2. Prior research has generated substantial knowledge about information technology (IT) risk management in general and clinical information systems in particular. Nonetheless, in recent years, important accumulated signs have shown that this wisdom, due to some limitations, might not be adequate in forging useful insights for managing risk associated with electronic health record (EHR) in a hospital context. I aim to shift thinking away from two such held major limitations of the extant literature on IT risk management: (1) one-phase focused, as opposed to considering the whole system lifecycle, and (2) client-centric or health care provider (adopting organization) view, as opposed to considering all key players (health care provider, health care payer, software vendor, payers, etc.). In doing so, this essay attempts to draw researchers' attention to the following issue: How should hospitals manage the risk of EHR throughout the entire system lifecycle? Drawing from Poba-Nzaou [1] and Poba-Nzaou and Raymond [2], I articulate a conceptual framework for addressing this issue and framing important questions for future research as well as generating insights for improving hospitals' practices.