Issues Surrounding the Adoption of Mobile Health Technology by Clinicians in Ghana And Its Impact on Healthcare Delivery

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine issues surrounding the adoption of mHealth technologies by clinicians in Ghana and assess its impact on health care delivery in the country. Specifically, the research questions of this study sought to evaluate the current state of mHealth adoption in Ghana, identify factors affecting mHealth adoption, assess the impact of mHealth in healthcare delivery and examine potential interventions that could increase mHealth adoption by clinicians. Grounded in the theory of sociomateriality and coping, the study adopted the qualitative research design and conducted interviews of nine respondents, including seven clinicians and two officers from the Ghana Health Service. Taking a thematic content analysis of responses, the study found that mHealth adoption was nascent in Ghana though knowledge about mHealth appeared to be popular among most clinicians. Also, the study found that mHealth adoption was predominant and encouraged in private healthcare facilities as compared to public health facilities. A significant contribution of this study to existing literature was the finding that the challenges of adopting mHealth in developing countries were not only limited to cost but also inherently affected by issues of socio-economic segregation in the population. Besides, the study found that high illiteracy among patients, mistrust in the reliability of mHealth systems, cost-related matters in the acquisition and maintenance of mHealth technologies and the poor customization of mHealth technologies to local needs were among major factors hindering adoption in Ghana. That notwithstanding, mHealth was found to improve access to healthcare, reduce the time and cost involved in patients travel to seek for medical attention and also relieved clinicians of the unproportionate pressure of having to deal with several patients on a working day. The study thus recommends that there is a need for a suitable ecosystem that supports mHealth applications to be developed. Besides, the research suggests that there should be education and awareness creation targeted at both patients and clinicians.