Purpose

This paper aims to gain insights about information management practices in public health-care organizations in Kuwait and offer recommendations to improve these practices.

Design/methodology/approach

This study involves secondary analysis of quantitative and qualitative accreditation-related data pertaining to the compliance with the Information Management standard at seven public tertiary health-care facilities over two accreditation cycles.

Findings

Overall, organizations improved their compliance with the Information Management standard. However, issues exist with effectively and efficiently transmitting data, aggregating clinical and administrative data and using the information for both strategic planning and quality improvement initiatives.

Research limitations/implications

The analysed data set does not provide information about the improvements done between the accreditation cycles. Caution should be applied before assuming generalizability of the results, considering the context and social constructs around the health-care system is essential.

Practical implications

Compliance with predetermined criteria through accreditation can improve information management practices. Without proper management of information at health-care facilities, achieving safe and effective patient care is futile. The role of health information technology (IT) should not be sidelined; robust health IT solutions can help support good information management practices thereby improving care quality and aiding health-care reform.

Originality/value

Concerning information management, health-care organizations providing focused services have clear advantages over organizations providing general care services. Considering the type of care organization (general vs specialized) can provide insights into how information management practices can affect the operations of the organization.

中文翻译：

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公共三级医疗机构的信息管理实践：来自科威特州的实证研究

目的

本文旨在获取有关科威特公共卫生组织中信息管理实践的见识，并提出改进这些实践的建议。

设计/方法/方法

这项研究涉及在七个认证周期内对七个公立三级医疗机构符合信息管理标准的定量和定性认证相关数据进行二次分析。

发现

总体而言，组织提高了对信息管理标准的遵从性。但是，有效和高效地传输数据，聚合临床和行政数据以及将信息用于战略计划和质量改进计划都存在问题。

研究局限/意义

分析的数据集未提供有关认证周期之间所做改进的信息。在假定结果可推广之前，应谨慎行事，考虑到围绕卫生保健系统的背景和社会结构至关重要。

实际影响

通过认证符合预定标准可以改善信息管理实践。如果在医疗机构没有适当的信息管理，那么实现安全有效的病人护理是徒劳的。健康信息技术（IT）的作用不容忽视；强大的医疗IT解决方案可以帮助支持良好的信息管理实践，从而改善医疗质量并帮助医疗改革。

创意/价值

关于信息管理，提供重点服务的卫生保健组织比提供普通保健服务的组织具有明显的优势。考虑到护理组织的类型（一般与专业）可以提供有关信息管理实践如何影响组织运作的见解。