Kabelo L. Mauco
Health infrastructure and operating systems, Public health informatics, ICT for health care delivery and management, e-health implementation, e-health readiness, Botswana
e-health is currently a noteworthy issue worldwide, in Africa and indeed in Botswana. e-health systems include the applications of information and communications technology to improve health care services delivery, support and education. Many countries around the world including Botswana, are in the process or have already adopted the use of such technology in their health care sectors. This is done in most instances without first gauging e-health readiness of the health care workers who are meant to use such technology as well as the facilities in which such technology will be rolled out to. e-health readiness can be defined as the preparedness of health care institutions or communities for the anticipated change brought by programs related to information and communications technology. The objectives of this study were to measure e-health readiness of health care institutions in Botswana as well as identification of personal attributes that may influence readiness of the potential users of e-health. A close-ended self administered questionnaire was used to collect data from a total of 87 health care workers at two hospitals in Botswana. The questionnaire contained 19 questions covering 3 domains (aptitudinal readiness, attitudinal readiness and infrastructural readiness). The responses were rated on a 5-point Likert-type scale ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree. The questionnaires were then coded and transcribed into the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 21.0 for analysis. Results in this study highlighted that the participating institutions illustrated a varying degree of e-health infrastructural readiness. Participants in the study demonstrated a high level of e-health attitudinal readiness but also a low level of e-health awareness. This study sets a tone for a more comprehensive study to assess the level of e-health readiness in Botswana.
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