Digitally Delivered, Systemically Challenged: A Qualitative Study of Health System Readiness for Digital Care

Area of Science:

• Digital Health
• Health Informatics
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Digital health technologies offer potential to expand healthcare access, enhance care coordination, and reduce costs.
• Significant barriers hinder the integration of digital health tools into routine clinical practice.
• Understanding health system leader perspectives is vital for developing scalable and sustainable digital health solutions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore health system stakeholders' attitudes, experiences, and priorities regarding digital health implementation.
• To identify key facilitators and barriers to adopting digital health technologies in clinical settings.
• To inform strategies for successful integration of digital health into healthcare delivery.

Main Methods:

• Conducted semi-structured interviews with 12 diverse U.S. health system stakeholders (clinical, operational, executive).
• Utilized purposeful and snowball sampling for participant selection.
• Employed thematic analysis based on the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) for data analysis.

Main Results:

• Stakeholders perceive digital tools as beneficial for healthcare access, efficiency, and public health, particularly in underserved areas.
• Key adoption challenges include operational burdens of EHR integration, potential risks to quality and equity, and the impact of external factors like reimbursement and regulation.
• Successful integration requires addressing workflow, quality, equity, and external policy/infrastructure considerations.

Conclusions:

• Digital health is considered essential for future healthcare delivery.
• Meaningful integration necessitates alignment across clinical, operational, and policy domains.
• Coordinated investment, regulatory reform, and robust data infrastructure are critical for scalable and sustainable digital health solutions.