title: The sociology of change.
abstract: Sociology is defined as the study of the origin, development, organization, and functioning of human society. Implementing a new electronic medical record is a change management project with a technology component and requires an understanding and appreciation of the history, organizational structure, and culture of the practice as well as an understanding and appreciation of how people function within a given organization. Practices that embrace this philosophy and approach to implementation are successful and see their practices positively transform as a result of using health information technology. This article describes an approach to technology projects that improves success.
authors.affiliation: Coker Group, 7 Bala Avenue, Suite 303, Bala Cynwyd, PA 19002, USA. dmcgrath@cokergroup.com
authors.forename: Debra
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: McGrath
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D004059:Diffusion of Innovation; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D016347:Medical Records Systems, Computerized; D015279:Organizational Culture; D009936:Organizational Innovation