Policies and practices related to information system adoption in hospitals owned by Ministries of Health in the Arab Gulf.
This is a discussion paper based on the findings from a study of the factors affecting the adoption of computer-based hospital information systems (CBHIS) in the Arabian Gulf. The study involved on-site visits to hospitals in Bahrain, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates as well as visits to ministries of health in these countries. The focus of this paper is on the adoption of CBHIS by ministry of health (MOH) hospitals, in specific, because of the main role that ministries of health play as providers of health care in the Region. Prior to describing CBHIS adoption practices, an overview of the Region in terms of its economic development and its health care delivery systems is presented. Next, the research setting along with the major findings are briefly described followed by a discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of centralized CBHIS adoptions. Finally, management guidelines related to the adoption of CBHIS by multi-hospital institutions are proposed.
Department of Health Services Administration, American University of Beirut.
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Nabali
D003659:Decision Making, Organizational; D004059:Diffusion of Innovation; D016002:Discriminant Analysis; D006077:Government Agencies; D006751:Hospital Information Systems / Q000458:organization & administration*; D008877:Middle East; D009096:Multi-Institutional Systems / Q000458:organization & administration; D015279:Organizational Culture; D009937:Organizational Objectives; D010934:Planning Techniques; D011635:Public Health Administration; D012044:Regression Analysis