Are we ready for digital innovation in healthcare?

Purpose: Digital revolution invests many important scientific and social areas and increasingly involves the biomedical sector, concurring to the delivery of medical treatments (diagnosis, therapies, etc.) and facilitating productivity and communication between patients and professionals and among professionals themselves. Some important issues regarding how to facilitate the acceleration and the use of digital technologies remain unsolved. In fact, such technologies seem to meet some relevant barriers in the adoption and implementation, especially because of their organizational implications. The objective of this research is to identify and critically appraise the pattern of adoption and diffusion of digital innovations in health care, and particularly, to identify the organizational and professional factors able to accelerate their successful implementation. Methodology: To achieve our goals, we administered a web-based survey questionnaire to the 51 Research Hospitals located in the Italian NHS to identify which digital technologies are applied in their clinical practice (robotics, blockchain, 3D printing, etc.) as well as which organizational and structural conditions are more likely to influence their digital readiness. Expected results: We expect to apply quantitative methods and Social Network Analysis techniques to understand the extent to which organizational factors accelerate the effective use and implementation of digital technologies and how their use influences existing inter-organizational relations. Limitations: Our research will contribute to provide information on best practices and guidelines aimed at supporting the Italian NHS in the introduction of digital innovation. Qualitative research will be further conducted to interpret and validate our quantitative findings.