Lovemore Motsi

Background: One of the challenges facing the usage of telemedicine technology in South Africa, particularly in the North West province (NWP), is lack of user acceptance by health care professionals which prevents piloted project to produce the desired outcomes. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the influential factors for the adoption of telemedicine by health care professionals from three selected hospitals (Bophelong, Taung and Klerksdorp) in the NWP. Method: The study adopted a case study approach and gathered data through questionnaires, which were distributed to the health care professionals of the three selected hospitals. In order to ensure that the instrument was accurate, a pilot study was carried out prior to the main investigation. Both the alpha and power values were set at 0.05 for the statistical analysis. The statistical tool used for the data analysis was SPSS v. 23.0. Results: Attitude towards the use of telemedicine technology (ATUTT), perceived usefulness (PU) and acceptance of telemedicine technology (ATT) were considered to be the influential factors in the adoption of telemedicine technology. The association between perceived ease of use (PEOU) and perceived usefulness (PU) (0.150, p = 0.034), PEOU and Attitude towards the use of telemedicine technology (ATUTT) (0.211, p = 0.002), PEOU and Acceptance of telemedicine technology (ATT) (0.245, p = 0.000), PU and (ATT) (0.212, p = 0.002), ATUTT and (ATT) (0.189, p = 0.005). However, PEOU was found to have an insignificant relationship with (0.048, p = 0.093). Hypotheses 1, 3, 4, 5, and 6 are supported while H2 was not supported. Conclusion: The study aims to fill the knowledge vacuum identified, helping poor countries effectively implement telemedicine technology to modernise the health care sector. In addition, results from this study shed insight on the varied impacts of individual, technical, clinical and multidimensional social influence variables on health care providers’ decisions to use telemedicine. Contribution: This study contributes to the body of knowledge by investigating the success factors for telemedicine technology adoption in South African public hospitals. These results have important implications for the public health care system in South Africa, both for the direction of future research and for the methods used to promote the use of telemedicine.

Background and Aim of Study: The prevalence of chronic diseases like diabetes has caused unmeasurable strain on many health systems especially in developing countries. Chronically ill patients are traumatised by their incurable illnesses, which adversely affects their adherence to their medical treatment, resulting in serious complications and even death. The aim of the study: to implement an intervention mobile health (mHealth) system by integrating persuasive technologies into mobile applications to empower diabetic patients to adhere to medical prescriptions. Material and Methods: Fogg Behaviour Model (FBM) was leveraged for the integration of mHealth and behaviour aspects. The system was developed with Kotlin programming using the Android Studio working integrated development environment (IDE). Tools including Firebase Real Time Database, Android Studio and Android Mobile Phone were used to afford a fully fledged mHealth self-monitoring system. The system was evaluated using descriptive statistics by medical personnel and social workers to determine the completeness, clarity, logical arrangement, correctness, reliability, usability, as well as content validity. Results: Findings indicated that the mHealth system meets a good degree of the measures that inform patients’ self-monitoring for medicine adherence. The evaluation results also suggested that some functionality of the mHealth self-monitoring system requires an incremental improvement, to provide a seamless healthcare support. The artefact was descriptively evaluated on seven parameters: completeness that showed a mean of 3.75 with a standard deviation of 1.070; functionality with a mean of 4.05 and standard deviation of 0.945; accuracy with a mean of 3.70 and standard deviation of 1.031; reliability a mean of 3.90 and standard deviation of 0.945; consistence a mean of 4.00 and standard deviation of 0.968; performance a mean of 3.75 and standard deviation of 1.250, and usability with a mean of 3.55 and standard deviation of 0.999. Conclusions: The developed system is as effective as face-to-face consultations and personal visits to healthcare facilities. Diabetic patients need to adhere to medicine to avoid further complications that could lead to death.

Background: Medical errors are becoming a major problem for health care providers and those who design health policies. These errors cause patients’ illnesses to worsen over time and can make recovery impossible. For the benefit of patients and the welfare of health care providers, a decrease in these errors is required to maintain safe, high-quality patient care. Objective: This study aimed to improve the ability of health care professionals to diagnose diseases and reduce medical errors. Methods: Data collection was performed at Dr George Mukhari Academic Hospital using convenience sampling. In total, 300 health care professionals were given a self-administered questionnaire, including doctors, dentists, pharmacists, physiologists, and nurses. To test the study hypotheses, multiple linear regression was used to evaluate empirical data. Results: In the sample of 300 health care professionals, no significant correlation was found between medical error reduction (MER) and knowledge quality (KQ) (β=.043, P=.48). A nonsignificant negative relationship existed between MER and information quality (IQ) (β=–.080, P=.19). However, a significant positive relationship was observed between MER and electronic health records (EHR; β=.125, 95% CI 0.005-0.245, P=.042). Conclusions: Increasing patient access to medical records for health care professionals may significantly improve patient health and well-being. The effectiveness of health care organizations’ operations can also be increased through better health information systems. To lower medical errors and enhance patient outcomes, policy makers should provide financing and support for EHR adoption as a top priority. Health care administrators should also concentrate on providing staff with the training they need to operate these systems efficiently. Empirical surveys in other public and private hospitals can be used to further test the validated survey instrument.

Background: Patient records are essential to healthcare professionals access to health information, allow them to assess symptoms and signs across a wider temporal range and improve diagnosis and treatment. The study acknowledged the significance of healthcare informatics such as Smart Card Technology (SCT) in today’s dynamic health systems. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate factors that influence healthcare professionals’ intentions to use SCT in public healthcare. Method: The study adopted a quantitative research approach using questionnaire surveys as a means to collect data from a total of 406 healthcare professionals from hospitals in Tshwane. Results: The findings showed that all of the variables based on the diffusion of innovation (DOI) theory, including behavioural intention (BI), social influence (SI), service quality (SQ), user satisfaction (US), compatibility (C), system use (SU) and information quality (IQ), as well as the health unified theory of acceptance of user technology (HUTAUT), DeLone and McLean’s Information Systems Success (D&M ISS) model, had a positive impact on the intention to use the SCT. Continued use of SCT was positively correlated with user satisfaction and found a favourable correlation between BI and all of the factors. Conclusion: The healthcare professionals’ intention to utilise SCT was notably impacted by various factors, including SI, SQ, US, C, SU and IQ. These factors collectively influence the intention to utilise the SCT. In addition, these findings show that BI has an impact on the intention to utilise SCT. Contribution: The results offer a more profound understanding of the variables that impact the use of SCT to improve patient outcomes. In developing countries, public hospitals can enhance their technology acceptance by utilising the SCT adoption framework. Furthermore, this study only included healthcare professionals who worked for public hospitals; to provide a more complete picture of both sectors, future research might concentrate on a target group of healthcare professionals who worked for both public and private hospitals. In addition, future studies should examine patient perceptions regarding the use of SCT in healthcare delivery and the characteristics that encourage patients to adopt and use the technology.

The South African Journal of Information Management explores the latest developments and trends in information and knowledge management to offer research that can be used to further the application of sound information and knowledge management practice.

Background: Electronic health records (EHR) has been acknowledged for bringing down healthcare costs and enhancing hospital service standards. Aim: The aim of this study was to develop an EHR model to lower patient treatment costs and enhance healthcare quality in South African public healthcare. Methods: In this study, a cross-sectional quantitative methodology was used. The research data for this study were provided by medical healthcare professionals, at Dr. George Mukhari Academic Hospital (DGMAH). This included doctors, nurses, pharmacists, radiologists, and radiographers who completed a semi-structured questionnaire. Results: The final model’s findings show that the use of EHR significantly improves information quality (IQ) and positively influences medical errors reduction (MER). Knowledge quality (KQ) has a positive significant impact on MER, whereas IQ has a considerable negative impact on MER. Furthermore, cost reduction in patient treatment (CRPT) has a positive significant influence on MER. Conclusion: Patients obtain better medical care when medical professionals have access to complete and accurate information. Medical errors can be reduced or even prevented with the use of EHRs, which can lead to better patient outcomes. Contribution: The quality of patient care at South African public hospitals and in other developing countries can be enhanced by using this framework as a guide to reduce treatment costs.

Background: In healthcare facilities, evidence-based healthcare practice (EBHP) is becoming more widely acknowledged as a critical element of patient care delivery. An increasingly important component of EBHP is the implementation of electronic health records (EHRs). Objectives: This study aims to investigate factors that influence EBHP adoption in public healthcare institutions in South Africa. Method: Four hundred and fifty patients were self-administered to healthcare professionals at an academic public hospital in Gauteng and used in this study. A total of 300 responses were available for use in the final analysis following the data cleaning procedure. Utilising structural equation modelling (SEM), the collected data were analysed. Results: Perceived ease of use (PEOU) and perceived usefulness (PU) were found to be major variables in the adoption of EBHP along with technological, organisational and environmental factors. The technology context relative advantage (RELA) was shown to have a positive significant influence on the adoption of evidence-based healthcare practice by the PEOU and PU, with the environmental context government laws and regulations (GLRS) and organisational context organisational readiness (ORGR) coming in second and third, respectively. Conclusion: Perceived ease of use, PU, ORGR, and GLRS are regarded as a vital variables in the implementation of EBHP in South African public hospitals. Contribution: The study’s conclusions would be helpful to policymakers as they redefine nursing practice. Furthermore, the findings heighten the consciousness of healthcare practitioners regarding the significance of employing evidence-based practice while making decisions.

Background: Implementing curriculum reforms can be difficult because they call for several adjustments that may contradict deeply ingrained subjective realities and pre-existing beliefs in both the individual and organisational contexts. Aim: This study was sought to investigate the factors that influence the successful adoption of future school curriculum. Setting: The study was conducted in secondary schools in Tshwane South district. Methods: Six hundred questionnaires were distributed to teachers in 10 secondary schools; 496 of the 600 surveys that were sent out were returned, yielding a 67% response rate. A total of 444 questionnaires were processed for analysis after 52 were discarded because of spoilage. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modelling (SEM) were used to analyse quantitative data. Results: School leadership support and teacher professional development have a significant impact on the successful adoption of future school curricula. Conclusion: It is evident that teachers need professional development that is available to them in a range of settings and that includes materials that will facilitate their ability to teach classes. Contribution: This study adds to the body of knowledge by presenting a novel theory, curriculum-based reform (CBR) theory, which developed from the task-technology fit (TTF) theory and looked into what factors influence the successful adoption of future school curricula.

Background: For healthcare institutions, proper documentation of the upkeep of patient medical records is imperative. In addition, without a record of the patient’s medical history, the doctors are unable to demonstrate that the treatment was delivered correctly. Aim: The primary objective of this research was to determine the influence of electronic health records (EHR) towards the adoption of evidence-based healthcare practice (EBHP) in South African public healthcare. Methods: The study used a quantitative methodology, and a self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from 300 healthcare professionals. In all, 450 questionnaires were distributed, and of those, 150 were unfit for data analysis because of insufficient data, leaving a total of 300 responses. Data were analysed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to identify latent constructs. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to assess the validity and reliability of these constructs. The appropriateness of the measurement model was then assessed using fit indices for a structural equation model. Results: The findings show EHR had a direct influence on information quality, medical error reduction, diagnosis and treatment of diseases as well as better coordination of patient’s care. In addition, the results show that EHR-based clinical decision support is crucial for practising evidence-based healthcare and plays a significant role in the quality of healthcare, particularly in the management of diseases and preventative care. As all requirements for validity and reliability (root mean square error of approximation [RMSEA] = 0.085, comparative fit index [CFI] = 0.956 and χ2/df = 2.513) have been satisfied, the model is considered valid and reliable. Conclusion: When healthcare professions such as doctors and nurses accurately record patients’ medical histories, they are able to make successful medical decisions and prescribe medications based on the patients’ past and present medical histories. Electronic health records systems facilitate the easier and more efficient exchange of patient data between medical schools, research labs, specialists, pharmacies and other healthcare institutions. Furthermore, they provide medical professionals with resources and up-to-date information to help them deliver EBHP that can benefit patients by reducing or even eliminating medical errors. Contribution: The study contributes theoretically to the field of information systems by outlining a model that includes the variables that affect the adoption of EBHPs in public hospitals.