Exploring mobile working in healthcare: Clinical perspectives on transitioning to a mobile first culture of work
File(s)
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Objectives
This study investigated the views of healthcare professionals (HCPs) as end-users of mobile technologies to inform the requirements for a successful move towards a mobile first culture of work within secondary care. Many HCPs already used mobile devices to support their day-to-day practice and so transitioning to an organisational led mobile way of working is both needed and timely.
Materials and methods
In-depth focus groups and interviews at a UK academic hospital were conducted with HCPs (nurses, doctors, and allied health professionals). The interviews elicited views from HCPs about the use of mobile technologies in their clinical work and discussed their experiences of previous technology deployments.
Results
Thirty-four HCPs participated. Three themes were identified: integrating mobile working in hospital care; addressing data governance and accountability for mobile working; and handling the pace of change. The acceptance of mobile working is determined by whether it enhances, rather than hinders clinical practice whilst holding end-user’s confidence; measuring the impact of the administrative burden on workload, changes to professional accountability and safeguarding patient data are serious issues that need consideration; and the pace of change needs to work for all stakeholders.
Discussion and conclusions
The benefits of adopting mobile technologies are well recognised, however, technical and policy related factors identified by professional end-users require answers in order to successfully integrate mobile working into current practice. Adopting a mobile first approach to work is timely and achievable, but can only be delivered on a foundation of positive end-user engagement and strong organisational leadership.
This study investigated the views of healthcare professionals (HCPs) as end-users of mobile technologies to inform the requirements for a successful move towards a mobile first culture of work within secondary care. Many HCPs already used mobile devices to support their day-to-day practice and so transitioning to an organisational led mobile way of working is both needed and timely.
Materials and methods
In-depth focus groups and interviews at a UK academic hospital were conducted with HCPs (nurses, doctors, and allied health professionals). The interviews elicited views from HCPs about the use of mobile technologies in their clinical work and discussed their experiences of previous technology deployments.
Results
Thirty-four HCPs participated. Three themes were identified: integrating mobile working in hospital care; addressing data governance and accountability for mobile working; and handling the pace of change. The acceptance of mobile working is determined by whether it enhances, rather than hinders clinical practice whilst holding end-user’s confidence; measuring the impact of the administrative burden on workload, changes to professional accountability and safeguarding patient data are serious issues that need consideration; and the pace of change needs to work for all stakeholders.
Discussion and conclusions
The benefits of adopting mobile technologies are well recognised, however, technical and policy related factors identified by professional end-users require answers in order to successfully integrate mobile working into current practice. Adopting a mobile first approach to work is timely and achievable, but can only be delivered on a foundation of positive end-user engagement and strong organisational leadership.
Date Issued
2019-05-01
Date Acceptance
2019-03-06
Citation
International Journal of Medical Informatics, 2019, 125, pp.96-101
ISSN
1386-5056
Publisher
Elsevier
Start Page
96
End Page
101
Journal / Book Title
International Journal of Medical Informatics
Volume
125
Copyright Statement
© 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. This manuscript is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Licence http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Sponsor
National Institute for Health Research
National Institute of Health Research
National Institute for Health Research
Identifier
http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000462029700013&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=1ba7043ffcc86c417c072aa74d649202
Grant Number
n/a
NF SI 061710038
Subjects
Science & Technology
Technology
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
Computer Science, Information Systems
Health Care Sciences & Services
Medical Informatics
Computer Science
Readiness to change
Mobile working
Patient safety
Implementation
Disruptive technology
QUALITATIVE DATA
TECHNOLOGY
COMMUNICATION
INFORMATION
SMARTPHONES
Publication Status
Published
Date Publish Online
2019-03-07