Socio-technical theory, which places the social and technical elements together in a system, is central to organizational systems. It acknowledges that system optimization rests on the collaboration between people, technology, and processes. Social-technical theory in human informatics deals with technology barriers to implementation and utilization in health care systems (Xue et al., 2023). On the other hand, Socio-technical systems are about sharing the social and technical components to achieve organizational goals (Interaction Design Foundation, n.d.). Such systems are responsible for workflow continuity and resource sharing that is closely correlated with technological and social requirements.
Topics from Social Categories:
Organizational Theory, Change, and Transformation:
Organizational dynamics should be the primary focus of health informatics. Informatics experts who know how healthcare organizations work and adapt to the changes can easily integrate technical projects into existing workflows (Michigan Tech, 2022). This alignment is of utmost importance as it provides the basis for successful transformation within healthcare settings, where well-integrated technology can help deliver improved care to patients and increase the efficiency of operations. Efficient organizational change management is important in optimizing interactions between humans and technical systems in healthcare organizations. It facilitates the adoption of new technology by the workforce staff and creates a smooth transition into the institutional systems. However, resisting change is often a big problem as it hinders the implementation of the new systems. Overcoming resistance may be achieved through strategic communications, stakeholder engagement, and well-targeted training programs, which are useful in alleviating concerns and obtaining the support of staff members.
Citizen Driven Informatics:
Citizen-driven informatics empowers patients to be more autonomous in their health choices and collaborate with healthcare providers by providing them with control over their health data. This method holds the patient at the center of the care path and their personalized healthcare plan (Mantas et al 2021). Adaptable digital systems that are patient-centered and properly designed could play a significant role in patients’ performance in sociotechnical systems. They support patients in developing self-efficacy, advocating for themselves, and adhering to their therapies. However, these data privacy and security concerns could make the tools unpopular. To achieve success with citizen-driven data science while mitigating its vulnerabilities, it is paramount that these concerns be addressed by enforcing strong privacy regulations and transparent communication.
Technical Categories
Cloud Computing
The vast scalability and strong resilience of cloud computing have made the modernization of health information infrastructure possible. It is crucial since it creates a flexible and simple-to-use system for handling and getting hold of large amounts of healthcare data (Malathi & Kavitha, 2022). The scalability of this system is very prominent for healthcare providers who work with big datasets. It ensures that health informatics systems are more capable and compatible. Medical facilities can now use cloud computers to streamline the process of managing data, teamwork, and making data-driven decisions. Cloud computing is essential for health informatics as it enhances the sociotechnical systems for efficient use and access. It provides real-time access to the most pertinent patient information across different healthcare settings, thus helping improve care coordination and patient outcomes. However, the concern regarding privacy and data protection is the most prominent. In order to keep the data of the patients in the cloud confidential, healthcare organizations have to employ stronger security measures and follow the rules of regulators. Addressing issues like these will enable cloud computing to function better without compromising patient privacy or data accuracy.
Personal Health Records (PHR):
Personal Health Record (PHR) empowers patients to preserve their health information, promoting more patient care involvement (Eastway, 2020). PHRs can provide a holistic picture of one’s health history; therefore, they can help patients get involved, have better continuity of care, and, most importantly, improve communication between the healthcare providers and the patients. According to Davis (2020), the right implementation of PHRs improves the usability of sociotechnical systems by making patient-provider communication and decision-making easier. With it, doctors can obtain patient data in real time, which, in turn, will allow them to make better clinical decisions and improve the quality of treatment. For instance, people may only use them if the interfaces are easy enough and if there are interoperability problems. Healthcare organizations must consider these problems seriously and consider user-centered design and interoperability standards to use personal health records to the fullest in the sociotechnical systems.
In conclusion, socio-technical theory and systems help make health informatics projects better by looking at the interplay of different factors, such as social, technical, and organizational. Sociotechnical systems in healthcare can work better and be used more often if we focus not on things like organizational change, citizen-driven informatics, cloud computing, or personal health records (PHRs) but instead discuss these frameworks.
References
Davis, S. (2020). Ready for prime time? Using normalization process theory to evaluate implementation success of personal health records designed for decision making. Frontiers in Digital Health, 2, 575951.
Eastway, J. S. (2020). Adult patients’ experiences using electronic personal health records for self-management of chronic non-communicable disease: a qualitative systematic review (Doctoral dissertation).
Interaction Design Foundation. (n.d.). What are socio-technical systems? The Interaction Design Foundation. Retrieved September 13, 2022, from https://www.interactiondesign.org/literature/topics/socio-technical-systems
Malathi, V., & Kavitha, V. (2022). Innovative services using cloud computing in smart health care. Intelligent interactive multimedia systems for e-healthcare applications, 59-80.
Mantas, J., Stoicu-Tivadar, L., & Chronaki, C. (Eds.). (2021). Public Health and Informatics: Proceedings of MIE 2021 (Vol. 281). IOS Press.
Michigan Tech. (2022). What is health informatics? Michigan Technological University.
Retrieved September 13, 2022, from https://www.mtu.edu/health-informatics/what-is/
Xue, J., Deng, Z., Wu, T., & Chen, Z. (2023). Patient distrust toward doctors in online health communities: integrating distrust construct model and social-technical systems theory. Information Technology & People, 36(4), 1414-1438.
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