Effective of Management Framework for the National Health Information Platform in Underdeveloped Regions of China

Abstract

This study explored the optimal management of regional national health information platforms, focusing on the challenges faced by underdeveloped cities in China. Three core objectives guided the research 1) to identify the key components of an effective management system and understand how they interacted, drawing upon existing examples of platform development and implementation, 2) to construct a conceptual model, grounded in theories of multi-source flow, data lifecycles, and policy diffusion, and 3) to formulate testable hypotheses about the relationships between these components and empirically validate the model and hypotheses through rigorous data analysis. A quantitative approach was employed in this study. The target population consisted of hospital management, hospital information department personnel, medical informatization practitioners, and staff from health management departments at four hospitals in Baiyin City, Gansu Province. There were an unknown population number, data were collected from 900 completed questionnaires administered to personnel within these hospitals.

The study found that existing platforms revealed key elements crucial to a successful management system: the initial planning and construction phase, the ongoing operation and security management, and, critically, the management of data. Furthermore, the study uncovered significant interdependencies between these elements. A conceptual model could developed, integrating insights from multi-source flow theory, data lifecycle theory, and policy diffusion theory. This model proposed specific relationships between the identified key elements and overall platform success. The subsequent empirical testing of the model and hypotheses, conducted through data analysis, provided strong support for the hypothesized relationships. The quantitative analysis demonstrated statistically significant positive correlations between the key elements, thereby validating the conceptual model. These findings suggested that improvements in one area, such as data management, were likely to have a cascading positive effect on other areas, like operation and security, ultimately contributing to the long-term success and sustainability of the regional national health information platform.