Hostname: page-component-7c8c6479df-p566r Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-03-28T14:09:05.427Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Information technology capacities assessment tool in hospitals: Instrument development and validation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 January 2009

Mirou Jaana
Affiliation:
University of Ottawa
Guy Paré
Affiliation:
HEC Montreal
Claude Sicotte
Affiliation:
University of Montreal

Abstract

Objectives: This research integrates existing literature on information technology (IT) in hospitals, and proposes and validates a comprehensive IT capacities assessment tool in these settings.

Methods: A comprehensive literature review was conducted on Medline until September 2006 to identify studies that used specific IT measures in hospitals. The results were mapped and used as a basis for the development of the proposed instrument, which was tested through a survey of Canadian healthcare organizations (N = 221).

Results: A total of seventeen studies provided indicators of clinical and administrative IT capacities in hospitals. Based on the mapping of these indicators, a comprehensive IT capacities assessment instrument was developed including thirty-four items exploring computerized processes, thirteen items assessing contemporary technologies, and eleven items investigating internal and external information sharing. A time frame was inserted in the tool to reflect “plans for” versus “current” implementation of IT; in the latter, the extent of current use of computerized processes and technologies was measured on a (1–7) scale. Overall, the survey yielded a total of 106 responses (52.2 percent response rate), and the results demonstrated a good level of reliability and validity of the instrument.

Conclusions: This study unifies existing work in this area, and presents the psychometric properties of an IT capacities assessment tool in hospitals. By developing scores for capturing IT capacities in hospitals, it is possible to further address important research questions related to the determinants and impacts of IT sophistication in these settings.

Type
Research Reports
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

1. Amarasingham, R, Diener-West, M, Weiner, M, et al. Clinical information technology capabilities in four U.S. hospitals: Testing a new structural performance measure. Med Care. 2006;44:216224.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
2. American Hospital Association. Continued progress: Hospital use of information technology. Chicago: American Hospital Association. http://www.aha.org/aha/content/2007/pdf/070227-continuedprogress.pdf. Accessed April 14, 2008.Google Scholar
3. Ball, MJ. Hospital information systems: Perspectives on problems and prospects, 1979 and 2002. Int J Med Inform. 2003;69:8389.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
4. Bates, DW, Gawande, AA. Improving safety with information technology. N Engl J Med. 2003;348:25262534.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
5. Brooks, RG, Menachemi, N, Burke, D, Clawson, A. Patient safety-related information technology utilization in urban and rural hospitals. J Med Syst. 2005;29:103109.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
6. Brown, SH, Lincoln, MJ, Groen, PJ, Kolodner, RM. VistA – U.S. Department of veterans affairs national-scale HIS. Int J Med Inform. 2003;69:135156.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
7. Burke, DE, Menachemi, N. Opening the black box: Measuring hospital information technology capability. Health Care Manage Rev. 2004;29:207217.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
8. Burke, D, Menachemi, N, Brooks, RG. Diffusion of information technology supporting the Institute of Medicine's quality chasm care aims. J Healthc Qual. 2005;27:2432.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
9. Burke, DE, Wang, BBL, Wan, TTH, Diana, ML. Exploring hospitals’ adoption of information technology. J Med Syst. 2002;26:349355.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
10. Canada Health Infoway. Coming together: The first electronic health record systems are beginning to transform Canadian health care. 2003–2004 Annual Report. Montreal Toronto: Canada Health infoway; 2004. http://www2.infoway-inforoute.ca/Documents/Annual%20Report%2003-04%20EN.pdf. Accessed December 15, 2008.Google Scholar
11. Chaudhry, B, Wang, J, Wu, S, et al. Systematic review: Impact of health information technology on quality, efficiency, and costs of medical care. Ann Intern Med. 2006;144:E12-E22.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
12. Churchill, GA Jr. A paradigm for developing better measures of marketing constructs. J Mark Res. 1979;16:6473.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
13. Culler, SD, Atherly, A, Walczak, S, et al. Urban-rural differences in the availability of hospital information technology applications: A survey of Georgia hospitals. J Rural Health. 2006;22:242247.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
14. Culler, SD, Hawley, JN, Naylor, V, Rask, KJ. Is the availability of hospital IT applications associated with a hospital's risk adjusted incidence rate for patient safety indicators: Results from 66 Georgia hospitals. J Med Syst. 2007;31:319327.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
15. Goldberger, D, Kremsdorf, R. Clinical information systems – Developing a systematic planning process. J Ambul Care Manage. 2001;24:6783.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
16. Haruki, Y, Ogushi, Y, Okada, Y, et al. Status and perspective of hospital information systems in Japan. Methods Inf Med. 1999;38:200206.Google ScholarPubMed
17. Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society. 18th Annual HIMSS leadership survey: CIO results final report. Chicago: Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society; 2007. http://www.himss.org/2007survey/DOCS/18thAnnualLeadershipSurvey.pdf. Accessed February 11, 2008.Google Scholar
18. Institute of Medicine. Crossing the quality chasm: A new health system for the 21st century. Washington, DC: National Academy Press; 2001.Google Scholar
19. Institute of Medicine. To err is human: Building a safer health system. Washington, DC: National Academy Press; 2000.Google Scholar
20. Jaana, M, Ward, MM, Paré, G, Sicotte, C. Antecedents of clinical information technology sophistication in hospitals. Health Care Manage Rev. 2006;31:289299.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
21. Jaana, M, Ward, M, Paré, G, Wakefield, D. Clinical information technology in hospitals: A comparison between the State of Iowa and two provinces in Canada. Int J Med Inform. 2005;74:719731.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
22. Menachemi, N, Burke, D, Brooks, RG. Adoption factors associated with patient safety-related information technology. J Healthc Qual. 2004;26:3944.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
23. Menachemi, N, Burke, D, Clawson, A, Brooks, RG. Information technologies in Florida's rural hospitals: Does system affiliation matter? J Rural Health. 2005;21:263268.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
24. Menachemi, N, Burkhardt, J, Shewchuk, R, Burke, D, Brooks, RG. Hospital information technology and positive financial performance: A different approach to finding an ROI. J Healthc Manag. 2006;51:4058.Google ScholarPubMed
25. Ontario Hospital Association. Ontario hospital e-health adoption survey: 2007 Survey top line report. Toronto: Ontario Hospital Association; 2007. http://www.oha.com/Client/OHA/OHA_LP4W_LND_WebStation.nsf/resources/E-Health/$file/2007+Ontario+Hospital+e-Health+Adoption+Survey+Top+Line+Report.pdf. Accessed April 14, 2008.Google Scholar
26. Paré, G, Sicotte, C. Information technology sophistication in health care: An instrument validation study among Canadian hospitals. Int J Med Inform. 2001;63:205223.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
27. Poon, EG, Jha, AK, Christino, M, et al. Assessing the level of healthcare information technology adoption in the United States: A snapshot. BMC Med Inform Decis Mak. 2006;6:19.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
28. Thompson, TG, Brailer, DJ. The decade of health information technology: Delivering consumer-centric and information-rich health care, framework for strategic action. Washington, DC: US Department of Health and Human Services; 2004.Google Scholar
29. Ward, MM, Jaana, M, Bahensky, JA, Vartak, S, Wakefield, DS. Clinical information system availability and use in urban and rural hospitals. J Med Syst. 2006;30:429438.CrossRefGoogle Scholar