Abstract
In Ghana, as with other developing countries, there are several health information technology (HIT) initiatives as interventions to improve healthcare delivery. HIT implementation undoubtedly results in change. However, most studies relating to HIT implementation readiness have constantly neglected the role of change in successfully implementing HIT. This study intends to identify factors affecting successful change management as part of preparation towards successfully implementing HIT in public hospital in Ghana. To carry out this study, we conducted in-depth interviews with a matrix of HIT senior managers and thematically analyzed the data. The data was transcribed and uploaded into a Nvivo 11 software for analysis using thematic analysis techniques. Five (5) themes were discovered. They are: 1) Stakeholder participation; 2) Proof of experience in similar project; 3) Availability of committed change agents/all-levels-change representatives; 4) Clearly articulated change implementation strategy; and 5) Training and improvement mechanism (post-implementation). A fresh call is made for more attention to be paid to change as part of preparatory measures towards the adoption of HIT in Ghana using the five cardinal approaches identified as a guide.
Highlights
The struggle with inhumane circumstances such as lack of basic healthcare is more evident in Africa [1] due to severe shortage of healthcare provision on the continent
We focused on public hospitals, tertiary institutions because in Ghana, like in other developing countries, there is a lot of pressure on public healthcare services to improve quality, access whilst being efficient
The findings from this study provide an understanding of five key approaches to consider when dealing with change principally among healthcare providers when it comes to the introduction of health information technology (HIT)
Summary
The struggle with inhumane circumstances such as lack of basic healthcare is more evident in Africa [1] due to severe shortage of healthcare provision on the continent. Africa is home to 14% of the World’s population. It continues to struggle with 24% of the global. © Salifu Yusif, Abdul Hafeez-Baig and Jeffrey Soar. The full terms of this license may be seen at http://creativecommons. The full terms of this license may be seen at http://creativecommons. org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode
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