The Impact of Digital Healthcare - A study that examines the effects of digital healthcare services on performance in primary healthcare in Sweden

Abstract

This paper examines what effect digital healthcare has on primary healthcare in Sweden. Using aggregated register data from Jönköping county council and datasets, from väntetider and from hälsokollen a difference- in difference (DiD) analysis is conducted. The main result of this paper shows that digital healthcare has a statistically significant effect on accessibility in primary healthcare regarding in-patient visits. Results on the estimated effects on accessibility regarding phone call to a primary care center were not statistically significant. Since the results are mixed for our two outcome variables, phone and visits there is reason to believe that there is not enough evidence to conclude whether the effect is positive or negative. This paper has nevertheless contributed to the research field by adding a strategy to measure the effect of digital healthcare.