Health information technology: Current use and challenges for primary healthcare services

Abstract

Health information technology is developing rapidly, due to a profusion of actors and support from public policies. It generates new uses and functions, for both patients and professional users, thereby suggesting a "digital revolution" is coming. Nevertheless, e-Health's development meets with a particularly complex healthcare system, especially when it comes to primary care services. This situation creates four types of challenges. Firstly, an organizational challenge, meaning e-Health implementation needs to take into account the organization in which it intends to integrate. Secondly, a social and territorial concern, as the burden of inequalities is one of healthcare system's major issues. The third challenge is about economics, as we need to search for new methods for globally apprehending e-Health's business model and long-term sustainability. Lastly, the fourth challenge relates to new technical and legal issues.