Process-based understanding of value formation in digital healthcare

Category

Business, Economics and Law

Description of research project

Digital health tools refer to digital systems, platforms, applications and devices used in health services to support communication, care delivery, coordination, monitoring, decision-making, self-management, service implementation or evaluation. Examples include, but are not limited to, telehealth platforms, electronic health records, patient portals, digital referral systems, clinical decision-support or AI-supported tools, wearable devices, remote monitoring systems, digital self-management applications, and tools with gamified or immersive functions (VR/AR/MR/XR). This study examines how these tools influence relationships and day-to-day work across the health system, and what this means for value co-created or co-destroyed in care. The aim is to build a process-based understanding that can support more coordinated, equitable and sustainable ecosystem well-being in Aotearoa New Zealand.

We seek the real-world experiences of healthcare practitioners in New Zealand, including clinicians and allied health professionals, healthcare organisational representatives, policy and governance actors, digital health technology specialists, and digital health researchers or academic specialists. Please note that no ethnicity data will be collected in this study. Māori perspectives will be represented through purposive engagement and culturally appropriate research practices, rather than through the collection of individual ethnicity information. Your insights on adoption, use and implementation challenges will help identify what enables or hinders collaboration and care. Your participation is an important contribution to practice-relevant knowledge about digital healthcare. The findings will contribute to a doctoral thesis in Digital Health Marketing and may be used for academic publications and presentations.

Inclusion and/or exclusion criteria

General prerequisites (apply to all groups):

1. Adults aged 25-65, based in Aotearoa New Zealand.
2. Healthcare practitioners (that is, all healthcare stakeholders other than patients).
3. Recent involvement with digital health tools in the past 24 months (use, implementation, management, design/strategy, or policy/decision-making).
4. Able to take part online or in-person in English and willing to provide informed consent.

Role categories:

a. Healthcare professionals (clinicians)
b. Healthcare organisation representatives
c. Healthcare policy, governance or strategic decision-making actors
d. Digital health technology specialists
e. Digital health researchers or academic specialists

Individuals who have a direct line-management, supervisory, or assessment relationship with any member of the research team are not eligible to take part.

Statement of ethics approval

Approved by the Auckland University of Technology Ethics Committee on 2025-11-11 for Three years until 11 November 2028..

AUTEC approval number

25/300

Contact person

Yanruo (Nora) Zhang, nora.zhang@aut.ac.nz

Participant information sheet