Professionalism and IT - A study of Japanese healthcare

Abstract

The purpose of this study has been to determine what role professionalism has in the introduction of IT. Theory suggest that professionalism is a potential cause for rational as well as irrational issues, encompassing a spectrum ranging from gaps in expertise to matters of professional pride. Rational or irrational, professionalism is said to be a potential barrier for collaborative efforts. This would, if true, be an impediment for the successful introduction of IT as its main purpose is communication and facilitating collaboration. The professional context chosen for the study was healthcare and the geographical context elected was Japan. The study was separated into two phases, the first of which consisted of a number of interviews with individuals knowledgeable of either healthcare in general or Japanese healthcare in particular. This study revealed a number of issues which directly or indirectly affect the introduction of IT into Japanese healthcare. The preliminary study also suggested a number of ways in which change efforts in healthcare may be facilitated. Following the preliminary study, a number of case studies were carried out at medical facilities in Japan. These were subsequently analyzed based on a synthesis of theoretical underpinnings and results of the preliminary study. The analysis shows that professionalism may have either detrimental or beneficial effects based on the situation. - Lone professionals focusing only on their own working environments tend to have a detrimental effect on the introduction of IT as they lack a comprehensive view of the organization. A strong management possessing an adequately holistic perspective is therefore needed to counter the myopic perspective of the single professional. - However, a large group of professionals able to reach a consensus or compromise tend to have a beneficial effect on the introduction of IT – even if they are still focused on a single issue. In this case, the need for management is reduced as the consensus reached among peers yield as sufficiently wide perspective. Also noted were distinctly different perspectives on how matters relating to IT were treated. The more common approach was to utilize special forums or meetings where technical issues were discussed. A less common approach was to process matters relating to IT through conventional channels – just like any other business. Empirical data is however insufficient to determine what – if any – impact these different approaches have on the professional workplace. This would, in the researcher‟s opinion, be a suitable area for future research.