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The integration of Information and Communication Technology into medical practice

I’m delighted to announce that the article entitled “The integration of Information and Communication Technology into medical practice” has been accepted and is already in press at the  International Journal of Medical Informatics. As soon as possible I will upload a pre-print version.

PREPRINT

Please cite this article as:

Lupiáñez-Villanueva, F., Hardey, M., Torrent, J., & Ficapal, P. (2010). The integration of Information and Communication Technology into medical practice. Int J Med Inform, 79(7), 478–491.

PUBMED link

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES:

To identify doctors’ utilization of ICT; to develop and characterise a typology of doctors’ utilization of ICT and to identify factors that can enhance or inhibit the use of these technologies within medical practice.

METHODS:

An online survey of the 16,531 members of the Physicians Association of Barcelona who had a registered email account in 2006 was carried out. Factor analysis, cluster analysis and binomial logit model were undertaken.

RESULTS:

Multivariate statistics analysis of the 2199 responses obtained revealed two profiles of adoption of ICT. The first profile (38.61% of respondents) represents those doctors who place high emphasis on ICT within their practice. This group is thus referred to as ‘integrated doctors’. The second profile (61.39% of respondents) represents those doctors who make less use of ICT so are consequently labelled ‘non-integrated doctors’. From the statistical modelling, it was observed that an emphasis on international information; emphasis on ICT for research and medical practice; emphasis on information systems to consult and prescribe; undertaking teaching/research activities; a belief that the use of the Internet improved communication with patients and practice in both public and private health organizations play a positive and significant role in the probability of being an ‘integrated doctor’.

CONCLUSIONS:

The integration of ICT within medical practice cannot be adequately understood and appreciated without examining how doctors are making use of ICT within their own practice, organizational contexts and the opportunities and constraints afforded by institutional, professional and patient expectations and demands.

Please cite this article as:

Lupiáñez-Villanueva, F., Hardey, M., Torrent, J., & Ficapal, P. (2010). The integration of Information and Communication Technology into medical practice. Int J Med Inform, 79(7), 478–491.

PUBMED link

New position at Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (IPTS)

After seven years working at Open University of Catalonia and its Internet Interdisciplinary Institute, I’m enjoying the benefits of an unpaid leave to begin a new professional adventure.  Yesterday, I started to work at at Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (IPTS) in Seville, one of the seven scientific institutes of the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC).

I would like to share the published information available at IPTS website about my new position:

Research Project Title
Economic Evaluation and modelling for Personal Health Systems

Project Description
The Information Society Unit has a vacancy to study the role of ICTs in the transformation of society in general and the lives of individuals in particular in the framework of Action 14003 ‘Techno-economic Impacts Enabling Societal Change’ (TIESC). This action is currently carrying out research on the role of ICTs in: (a) health and quality of life; (b) digital identity and information search. The successful candidate will analyse EU-wide market data and evaluate HealthCare (HC) policy options at EU level in relation to Personal Health Systems (PHS).

She/he will contribute to this work by making use of a range of tools (literature reviews, descriptive statistics, desk research, interviews, organisation of expert workshops, modeling methods, etc.) to develop evidence-based policy support at European level. She/he will author/review several reports and articles annually, conceive, launch, execute or coordinate research work, participate in seminars and make public presentations to high-level audiences. She/he should have experience in:

  • Developing and improving working tools to measure emerging ICTs impacts on the EU health care markets;
  • Data analysis and quantitative methods and an ability to explain them to technical as well as non-technical audiences
  • Working knowledge of the different EU healthcare systems;
  • Familiarity with public policy implications of new technologies and their economic and societal implications at EU or international level;
  • Working in a multi-cultural, multi-disciplinary environment.

Candidates must hold a doctoral degree or having fulfilled all the obligations to obtain a PhD (certified by the university) or having a minimum of 5 years research experience after the first university degree giving access to doctoral studies (which may include periods of training such as a masters degree) in a field relevant to the JRC’s scientific activities.

A very good level of written and spoken English is essential and knowledge of at least one other EU language is compulsory.

I have to settle in the new position and also in Seville to learn how to keep collaborating with all my colleagues without any inconveniences with my new responsibilities. Furthermore, since now I have to use this

Disclaimer:

“The views expressed are purely those of the writer and may not in any circumstances be regarded as stating an official position of the European Commission”

Health and the Network Society: Spanish/Catalan book launched

I’m delighted to present my book: Health and the Network Society published by Ariel now available at the book stores. I perfectly know that it would not become a best-seller but I hope it could contribute just a little to foster new debates and further research on ICT and Health.Health systems are embedded within technological, economic, social and cultural changes of our current social structure: the network society. This book is based on empirical research about the transition of the Catalan health system towards the network society. The results show how the interaction between the technological, economic, organizational, social and cultural dimensions are facilitating the emergence of new profiles of citizens, patients and healthcare professionals. The determinants that shape these new profiles allow us to identify the inhibitors and drivers of Industrial healthcare systems towards the Network healthcare systems.

Spreading thesis research results

Lately I haven’t posted because I have been developing my thesis site to spread the results of the research. The site is in Spanish and the discussion will be in Spanish too. Here goes the video of my presentation (it’s also in Spanish if somebody likes to subtitle it, will be very welcome).

I’m sorry but I do not have enough time to translate the whole document, but I have started to write some papers in English so soon I’ll be sharing some parts of them for a kind of peer review taking into account the restrictions of the Journals.

Thesis defense: The Internet, Health and Network Society

On 23rd January 2009 I defended my PhD thesis “Internet, health and society. Analysis of the uses of internet related to health in Catalonia” supervised by the IN3’s Director and UOC Research Professor Manuel Castells. I’m translating my slide presentation, it takes time because It has many figures, just take a look at the Spanish version, and my talk to English but I would like to share the Spanish version of my presentation and the main structure in English.

Objectives:

  • Identify and characterize the presence of the actors of the Catalonian healthcare system in the Internet
  • Identify, characterize and explain the determinants of the use and social practices that the principal actors of the healthcare system carry out through ICT, specifically that of the Internet

Research questions

  • What type of quality information and applications related with Health are offered on the Internet?
  • How can the presence of the healthcare system’s actors on the Internet be characterized?
  • Which are the main barriers and incentives of patient support groups for Internet use?
  • What are the ICT uses of the citizens with regard to health and how can they be characterized?
  • What are the consequences of citizen ICT use, specifically that of the  Internet, regarding the management of their health and the relationship with their healthcare professionals?
  • What are the determinants (technological and non-technological) of the demand of healthcare services by citizens via the Internet?
  • What are the uses of ICT, especially the Internet, by healthcare professionals  and how can they be characterized?
  • What are the determinants (technological and non-technological) of the uses of the Internet by health care professionals (Physicians, Nurses and Pharmacist)?

General Hypothesis:

  • The interaction between social structure, the increase of information flow and ICT causes a transformation in social practices and in the behaviour of the actors of the  healthcare system

Sub Hyphotesis

  • The Internet is basically an information space on Health and not an interaction space between the actors of the healthcare system; therefore health webs are characterized by the offer of information resources, by the lack of applications related with communication or services and by levels of quality associated with the actor who provides the resource
  • The interrelation between access, use and assessment of ICT, healthcare services demand and the capacity of the individuals to take decisions over their own health or those closest to them determines the use of the Internet to access to the health system, a new patient profile called the e-patient
  • The interrelation between the intensive use of ICT, specially the Internet, the positive assessment by healthcare professionals of these technologies in relation with their work activities and their patients, the intensive use of the information and professional work oriented towards research determines a new professional profile called the  Networked healthcare professional.

Methodology

This thesis has verified that:

  • The Internet constitutes an information space on health and not an interaction space between the various actors in the healthcare system; consequently, health webs are characterized by the offer of resources related with information, the lack of applications related with communication and services, and certain levels of quality associated with the actor that offers the resource.
  • The interaction between access, use and evaluation of ICT; the demand of healthcare services and the capacity of the individuals to take decisions over their own health and those closest to them, determines the use of the Internet to have access to the healthcare system, i.e. determining a new profile of patient that we have called the e-patient.
  • The interrelation of the intensive use of ICT, especially that of the Internet; the positive assessment of these technologies in relation with their work and their patients; the intensive use of information, and a professional activity oriented towards research determines a new professional profile which we call the networked healthcare professional (networked physician, networked nurse, networked pharmacist)

Future lines of research

  • Analysis of the determinants of the processes of innovation of the healthcare systems in relation to ICT
  • Analysis of the determinants of the state of health in the context of the Network Society
  • Analysis of public policies in the context of the Network Society
  • Analysis of the technological dynamics and interactions, economic and social of biomedical research in the context of the Network Society

Spanish presentation

You can check all the references here or on my personal reference manager. Ismael Peña and Oriol Miralbell have blogging and comment the event. Finally, this thesis is just the beginig of a research career. If you have found any interesting point or something to disscuss or compare, let’s share. As Liverpool supporters You’ll Never Walk Alone.

My Works

In this page I am going to collect and share some of the works I have been doing along or with fellows.

During 2005 - 2007 I was working in the Project Internet Catalonia “Technological Modernisation, Organisational Change and Service Delivery in the Catalan Public Health” directed by the Prof. Manuel Castells.

This research project analyses the interaction between information and communication technologies, organisational change, cultural change and relationships with users in the public system of health services in Catalonia.

The study will include a statistical analysis of the dissemination and uses of information and communication technologies in the public health system, including hospitals, primary care centres, clinics and other service delivery centres. It will also analyse the uses of communication technology in the relationship between these centres, the health administration, social security and insurance companies.

The study plans also to conduct a qualitative study of the social practices that condition the introduction of new technologies in three major hospitals. It will also analyse health-related websites in Catalonia, with particular emphasis on the uses of these webs by patients. We will also study the development of Internet-based self-help groups among patients and their relatives. We will also carry out a series of in-depth interviews with experts and managers of the health administration system, MDs, nurses, paramedics, hospital workers, associations of patients, biomedical researchers and managers of hospitals and health services.

About Me

flupianez_290507.jpgA few lines about myself. My name is Francisco Lupiáñez- Villanueva (or just Paco a typical Spanish name) and I begun this site as a blog following the concept of Personal Research Portal developed by Ismael Peña.

I am Associate Professor at Open University of Catalonia, School of Information and Communication Science, teaching and coordinating issues related to Network Society:

  • Information Policies
  • Information Society
  • Media and Information Society

On 23th January 2009 I have defended my PhD thesis “Internet, Health and Society. Analysis of the uses of internet related to health in Catalonia”. The thesis has been supervised by the IN3’s Director and UOC Research Professor Manuel Castells.

During 2008 I worked as a researcher in  the project “Citizens, Health and the Internet in Catalonia” directed by Prof. Castells. Before this (2007-2005) I was involved  in the Project Internet Catalonia “Technological Modernisation, Organisational Change and Service Delivery in the Catalan Public Health” directed by the Prof. Manuel Castells.

My research is concerned with the social, economic, cultural and policy issues associated with information and communication technologies; so using Prof. Castells theoretical blueprint I’m interested in the relationship between the new technological paradigm -informationalism- and the current social structure -Network Society-.

My research interests can be written, in a broad sense, this way:

  • Health, Government, Welfare and the Internet.
  • Digital Economy.
  • New Media and Communication.

In 2003, I gave support in every e-learning UOC UNESCO Chair project, and I also had been teaching and doing some contents for the UOC’s E-learning International Master Degree.

You can contact me: flupianez[at]ictconsequences.net