The Nurse LEADership for Implementing Technologies - Mobile Health Model (Nurse LEAD-IT - mHealth)

Purpose of the paper: To describe the development of a testable conceptual model that examines the relationship between implementation leadership characteristics and nurses' use of mobile health technologies (mHealth) as part of their nursing practice. The model is currently being tested in the pan-Canadian context.

Primary concepts and issues to be addressed: The 2014 and 2017 Canada-wide surveys of nurses' use of technologies reported seemingly low rates of mobile technology use: 3% in 2014 and 7% in 2017(Canada Health Infoway 2014, 2017). The agenda to increase the use of mHealth by nurses persists, though understanding of nurses' use of mHealth remains underexplored. Nurses' usage of mHealth has primarily been examined using technology acceptance models, which are limited in their ability to account for unique aspects of nursing practice. The Nurse LEADership for Implementing Technologies (Nurse LEAD-IT) - mHealth (Nurse LEAD-IT - mHealth) model draws concepts from implementation science, computer science, organizational behaviour, information science and nursing to develop a testable conceptual model. The model facilitates examination of the relationship between nurses' use of mHealth and leaders' implementation characteristics (proactivity, knowledge, support and perseverance) and technology acceptance (perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use), while controlling for factors that influence technology use (previous experience and voluntariness of use) and nurses' acceptance of evidence-based practice (age, gender and education).

Significance and/or implications for nurse leaders: The Nurse LEAD-IT model can aid in delineating the pragmatic skills and knowledge necessary for nursing leaders to successfully implement mHealth initiatives in nursing practice settings. Use of mHealth in Canadian nursing settings remain in the emergent stages; results from the testing of this conceptual model will be timely and important in informing current and future strategies by nursing leaders to best situate the development and implementation of mHealth for successful uptake and usage in nursing.