Essays on the adoption of innovations in healthcare
Innovations in healthcare, whether in the form of new medical products, digital health services, and advanced surgical technologies, are becoming more critical due to growing economic pressures, an increasing number of multimorbid patients, and a greater diversity of challenging patient needs. Thus, the importance of empirical research on determinants that influence the successful adoption and diffusion of health innovations increases significantly. Yet the healthcare system is undoubtedly complex, with a wide variety of stakeholders, rapid and continuous technological advances, regulatory frameworks, and the need for interdisciplinary collaboration on a daily basis. This cumulative dissertation aims to explore various perspectives on the adoption of innovations by health care professionals and by hospitals. It specifically focuses on the adoption of novel medical services and digital health systems, considering existing research gaps and their significance in current literature. To account for the complexity of the healthcare system, it examines adoption factors from different sources of influence, including individual, organizational, and interorganizational influences. This dissertation utilizes a mix-methods approach that incorporates the use of both qualitative and quantitative data. It includes a total of four research articles. The findings confirm that the adoption of health innovations is influenced by factors of multiple sources, including interprofessional boundaries and collaboration between different health professionals, spatial competition between neighboring hospitals, and research collaboration with industy partners, as well as individual perceived threats to the professional identity. It provides valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities of innovation adoption in healthcare, and ultimately contributes to the advancement of knowledge and improvement of healthcare practices by promoting the transformation of the healthcare system.
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