Issues for Successful Implementation of Korea's Hospital Information Systems

Abstract

This study identifies key management issues in hospital information systems in Korea and critical success factors in management. The evolution of management issues in Korea between 1999 and 2006 was analyzed using secondary analysis, and it is determined if tertiary hospitals follow Nolan‟s growth stage theory. Moreover, the critical success factors (CSF) influencing hospital information systems from a management perspective were identified by analyzing the relationship between the above management issues and user satisfaction. The results showed that the top key management issue that was consistent with the 1999 study was “top management support,” and other important issues were “aligning the IS department within organizations,” “PACS,” “disaster recovery system,” “information strategy planning,” “standardization,” “EMR related regulations,” “security and control of information resources,” “EMR,” and “training of IT specialists.” In addition, tertiary hospitals were grouped into stages based on Nolan‟s stage theory in order to examine how management issues varied according to the growth stages (i.e., beginning year of implementing CPOE). Hospitals that were categorized into the third stage had the highest user satisfaction with the above key management issues. In summary, three management issues are found to be important issues for achieving successful implementation of hospital information systems: adequate support from top management, proper user training, and effective use of outsourcing are recommended.