IT-supported skill-mix change and standardisation in integrated eyecare: lessons from two screening projects in The Netherlands
Introduction: Information Technology (IT) has the potential to significantly support skill-mix change and, thereby, to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of integrated care. Theory and methods: IT and skill-mix change share an important precondition: the standardisation of work processes. Standardisation plays a crucial role in IT-supported skill-mix change. It is not a matter of more or less standardisation than in the ‘old’ situation, but about creating an optimal fit. We used qualitative data from our evaluation of two integrated-care projects in Dutch eyecare to identify domains wher... Mehr ...
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Dokumenttyp: | Artikel |
Erscheinungsdatum: | 2007 |
Reihe/Periodikum: | International Journal of Integrated Care, Vol 7, Iss 2 (2007) |
Verlag/Hrsg.: |
Ubiquity Press
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Schlagwörter: | skill-mix / information technology / standardisation / integrated care / eyecare / Medicine (General) / R5-920 |
Sprache: | Englisch |
Permalink: | https://search.fid-benelux.de/Record/base-26804780 |
Datenquelle: | BASE; Originalkatalog |
Powered By: | BASE |
Link(s) : | https://doaj.org/article/f813fc83531d4e7db8491883dd5e079b |
Introduction: Information Technology (IT) has the potential to significantly support skill-mix change and, thereby, to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of integrated care. Theory and methods: IT and skill-mix change share an important precondition: the standardisation of work processes. Standardisation plays a crucial role in IT-supported skill-mix change. It is not a matter of more or less standardisation than in the ‘old’ situation, but about creating an optimal fit. We used qualitative data from our evaluation of two integrated-care projects in Dutch eyecare to identify domains where this fit is important. Results: While standardisation was needed to delegate screening tasks from physicians to non-physicians, and to assure the quality of the integrated-care process as a whole, tensions arose in three domains: the performance of clinical tasks, the documentation, and the communication between professionals. Unfunctional standardisation led to dissatisfaction and distrust between the professionals involved in screening. Discussion and conclusion: Although the integration seems promising, much work is needed to ensure a synergistic relationship between skill-mix change and IT. Developing IT-supported skill-mix change by means of standardisation is a matter of tailoring standardisation to fit the situation at hand, while dealing with the local constraints of available technology and organisational context.