“Exploring the Impact and Roles that Strategic Government Leadership Plays in the Adoption and Use of eHealth in Low Resource Countries: A Quantitative and Descriptive Study of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria as a Health Regulatory Agency”.
MSc eHealth Defense Candidate: Victor Gbenro
Governments of low resource countries (LRCs) have embraced and leveraged the potential benefits Information Computer Technology (ICT) brings to the healthcare sector, taking various steps to adopt and use eHealth to improve healthcare delivery despite recognized challenges. LRCs have been identified as most challenged with the implementation of policies that can drive the development of critical sectors. Despite the development of policies and frameworks in these countries, many still struggle to deliver on their health goals. It is yet to be fully understood to what extent professional health regulatory agencies (PHRAs) understand their roles in effective regulation, as it would relate to medical education, professional conduct and registration of practitioners. The Healthcare workforce is one of the core building blocks of any health system and the regulation of the workforce is central to the provision of quality healthcare services. PHRAs provide strategic leadership through existing legislation, policies, and frameworks and are themselves adopting the use of ICT in a range of applications. These include the registration and licensure process of practitioners, and training and retraining of practitioners through continuing professional development activities. In 2016, the Nigerian government approved the implementation of it National ICT Strategic Framework for health and empowered its agency, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) which is an agency in the ministry of communication to provide the required leadership, governance, and stewardship in coordinating and improve upon the use of ICT in all key sectors of the country. This study was undertaken to understand the role PHRAs like the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) a regulatory body for the professions of medicine and dentistry in Nigeria provides Strategic Government Leadership (SGL) in the adoption and use of eHealth tools through policies and legislation in the health sector. The study also assessed the knowledge and perception of employees of the (MDCN) on existing eHealth policies and legislation and of their relevancy or adequacies in providing effective regulation. The study answers the research questions i) does a relationship exist between SGL and capacity for eHealth innovation and technological/ infrastructural development? ii) What are the measures taken and the importance of the security and privacy of practitioner records to PHRA? and iii) Does SGL, as demonstrated through policy development, affect the adoption and use of eHealth by employees of the PHRA? A systematic literature review was performed, and a structured questionnaire was administered to MDCN professional staff. The results were subjected to statistical analysis to investigate relationships between the dependent variable (SGL) and 14 independent variables representing the 15 constructs from the questionnaire. A regression model found four significant predictors of the value of the dependent variable. A study of other related PHRAs is recommended to improve the suitability of the framework proposed, considering the limitations of this study. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:mcmaster.ca/oai:macsphere.mcmaster.ca:11375/24299 |
| Date | 26 November 2018 |
| Creators | Gbenro, Victor |
| Contributors | Archer, Norm, eHealth |
| Source Sets | McMaster University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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