Electronic communities of care - Measuring the benefits

Collaborative technologies including web, mobile applications, social media and smart devices are driving new models of healthcare where providers and consumers can connect together in virtual communities that facilitate real-time communications and encourage consumers to take a greater role in the management of their health. As technology enabled care models evolve, it will become imperative for program researchers and evaluators to quantify their impacts and to answer the many efficiency and effectiveness questions that different stakeholders are likely to pose. The primary aim of this study was to develop a framework that would enable the health and socio-economic benefits of technology enabled health care (e-Healthcare) models to be evaluated from the perspectives of providers, recipients and funders. To achieve this aim, a multi-dimensional framework, incorporating Information Systems and Health Economics theory, was developed and refined through input from multiple case studies. These studies included an Australian Research Council (ARC) case using Health technologies to minimise unnecessary hospitalisation of elderly patients; an Australian E-Health Research Centre (EHRC) case using Tele-Health to deliver cardiac rehabilitation services; and a regional Australian care collaboration case involving multiple care providers from different disciplines. In each of these cases, the positive impacts of e-Healthcare models were clearly evident, with outcomes including increased access to services, increased participation, better health outcomes, improved safety and quality and more costeffective use of resources. The learnings from this study are many, including that even where it can be clearly demonstrated that the e-Healthcare model can provide significant benefits and is a preferred choice by users that this does not guarantee its continued operation and main stream uptake. This study will contribute to the literature by providing a framework and methodologies for evaluating and comparing the benefits and costs of service-Healthcare models. It will also assist researchers to better understand how the level of collaboration between providers and with recipients impacts on care outcomes and the delivery of sustainable care, in an increasingly ageing society.