E-health: een gouden vondst voor zorg­professionals?: Een kwalitatief onderzoek naar de ervaringen van zorg­professionals met het gebruik van e-health

Abstract

Dutch society is ageing. The growing number of elderly people is causing a growth in the demand for care, while the necessary care must be provided by a smaller group of healthcare professionals. The use of eHealth can provide a solution by increasing efficiency and improving services, as a result of which policymakers are increasingly focusing on the use of eHealth. However, healthcare professionals remain essential in service provision as well as in the digital transformation. This explorative study focuses on the experiences of healthcare professionals with the use of eHealth by examining the perceived influence of the use of eHealth on their wish to continue working in healthcare, job satisfaction and autonomy. The findings demonstrate that digital communication platforms, health apps and sensor technology can contribute to the job satisfaction of healthcare professionals, but that the connection between the technologies and perceived autonomy is less clear. Moreover, even though eHealth does not contribute to the desire to continue working in the healthcare sector directly, this desire can be enhanced indirectly through experiences of job satisfaction and autonomy. These preliminary findings provide new academic insights and offer policymakers concrete tools to shape a sustainable healthcare landscape.