Understanding dynamic collaboration in teleconsultation

Information and communication technology (ICT) has been widely deployed in the provision of health care for decades. Teleconsultation, one of these new telemedicine solutions, has been prevalently implemented in numerous countries with its tremendous potential to improve healthcare. However, the clinical utility has remained at a disappointing level. Unlike prior research that focuses on the pre-adoption or implementation stages, our research explores not only the understanding the antecedences of actual usage in post-adoption of teleconsultation service, but also the reasons for low actual usage in clinical practice. We identify specific theoretical attributes that are relevant to our research question, and extend TOE into an integrative theoretical framework. Initial propositions are generated based on theoretical perspectives in each dimension of the framework. Finally, we design a comparative case study as our research methodology, and conduct deductive analysis to test our propositions using data from multiple sources. Theoretical and practical implications, as well as future research, are outlined.